Meet Donnie Wahlberg's Children from Both His Old and New Relationships
Donnie Wahlberg started his career as a founding member of New Kids on the Block. Though he had his fair share of good and bad times, his children remain his greatest achievement.
Donnie Wahlberg joined four other boys to form a pop group called Kids on the Block back in the day. The group was a hit, reportedly selling over 70 million records worldwide.
On August 3, 1969, Donnie was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Donald Edmond Wahlberg Sr. and Alma Donnelly Wahlberg. He is the eighth of nine siblings, including famous actor Mark Wahlberg.
HIS FAMILY BACKGROUND
His father served in the Korean War before going home to work as a school bus driver and insurance marketer. His mom Alma worked as a bank teller, also getting into nursing assistance before eventually working as a hostess at her sons' restaurant, Wahlburgers.
Alma and Donald's marriage ended in divorce, the same way Donnie's marriage to first wife Kimberly Fey ended. Fey and the singer-actor were married from 1999 to 2010.
HIS FIRST WIFE AND SON
The two began dating publicly in 1991, but it took eight years for them to tie the knot. The marriage lasted from 1999 until 2010. On March 4, 1993, Fey gave birth to her first son, Xavier Alexander Wahlberg.
Xavier lives a life of privacy and anonymity — he stays away from social media for unknown reasons. His life is so under wraps that we don't know what school he went to or much about his past or current relationships.
Donnie Wahlberg performing in Austin, Texas on May 21, 2017 | Source: Getty Images
WAHLBERG'S CHILDREN WITH FEY
However, the 28-year-old reportedly started a heavy metal band in 2008 and went on the road for a while. He refused any help from his father when offered, choosing not to depend on his father to succeed in his craft.
Xavier's younger brother is Elijah Hendrix, born on August 20, 2001, to Fey. Unfortunately, less than ten years later, Donnie and Fey decided to part ways.
FIGHTING FOR CUSTODY
In the midst of their divorce, they battled for custody of Elijah, and Fey won. At the time, their eldest son Xavier was already of legal age.
While Fey ended up winning custody of Elijah, he remained on good terms with his father. In fact, he even appeared in the reality TV show "Donnie Loves Jenny," which started airing in 2015.
HIS SECOND WIFE AND THIRD SON
Jenny McCarthy, 46, entered Donnie's life in 2013 when she interviewed him on her radio talk show. McCarthy is an established actress, TV personality, comedian, author, and emcee.
in August 2014, she and Donnie wed just over a year after they met. Their show, "Donnie Loves Jenny," came into fruition just months later, in January 2015.
DONNIE IS A PROUD DAD
Along with his second marriage, Donnie got Evan Asher as part of the package and became his proud stepfather. McCarthy shares 17-year-old Evan with her ex-husband John Asher.
Donnie and McCarthy's reality show lasted for three seasons until 2016 when it ended. However, we've been able to keep up with the family on social media.
SHARING HIS LIFE WITH FANS
The "Blue Bloods" actor often posts pictures of his family on social media. He is a proud dad, once sharing that fatherhood was the most important responsibility that a man will ever have in his lifetime."
Accompanying the sweet caption were photos of him and his three sons. The first was with Xavier and Elijah when they were younger, and another was of him fixing Evan's tie.
ON EXPANDING THEIR FAMILY
Back in 2017, McCarthey spoke to ET about the possibility of having more kids with her husband. McCarthy admitted that she would have wanted more children if perhaps she were younger. She shared:
"We’ve realized we both have sons that are the same age [and] they both fell in love with each other. They’re teenagers, so they might not admit it, but they do love each other."
HIS MOTHER'S PASSING
This 2021, the Wahlberg family hit a rough patch when family matriarch Alma passed away at the age of 78. She had had dementia, something that Donnie opened up about in 2020.
At the time, he revealed that his mother's health deteriorated. "She didn't remember much and was often confused," he said.
Alma is survived by eight of her children. Her ex-husband Donald passed away in 2008, and her daughter Debbie died in 2003.