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Why Is Ginger Zee Leaving GMA? Family, Is She Jewish?

Author

Ethan Hayes

Updated on January 04, 2026

Ginger Zee, Good Morning America’s chief meteorologist, takes her job very seriously. However, some viewers are concerned that Ginger will be leaving the morning show. 

Ginger Zee’s social media feeds are chock-full of weather-related news, and she’s amassed a sizable fan base during her time on GMA, who eagerly awaits her daily reports.

She recently posted a photo of herself traveling on Instagram, which drew the attention of some fans. Furthermore, since she opened up about her health, people have been curious about what’s going on with Ginger.

Is Ginger Zee Leaving GMA? 

Ginger Zee isn’t completely leaving Good Morning America, but she is leaving the studio for a while.

Since the start of Hurricane Ida, she’s kept viewers up to date on how it’s affecting the South, primarily from inside ABC’s studios. On the other hand, Ginger is in Louisiana, reporting firsthand on the devastation and plight of the people there.

She posted a picture of her flight to Louisiana on Instagram on August 29, 2021, showing the empty seats in front of her and only a handful of people on her plane.

“So you’re saying you don’t want to go to southeastern Louisiana right now?” she wrote in the caption of the post, along with a winking emoji. “It’s a pretty empty flight into NOLA.”

Fans of Ginger and GMA were understandably concerned about the meteorologist’s safety. Still, she has posted frequently since arriving and has kept fans up to date on what is going on on the ground.

Many of her post captions include Louisiana weather updates, including which areas to avoid. So far, she appears to be doing everything she can to ensure that she can report to her audience, including focusing on her mental health.

Meet Ginger Zee Family- Is She Jewish?

Ginger Zee was born on January 13, 1981, in Orange, California, to Dawn Zuidgeest-Craft and Robert Zuidgeest. Before the journalist was a year old, her family relocated to Michigan.

There is no information on whether Ginger is Jewish. She has a stepfather named Carl Craft and two half-sisters named Adrianna and Elaina Craft in her extended family.

Adriaan Cornelis “Adrian” or “Arie” Zuidgeest and Hillegonda “Hilda” Zuidgeest are Zee’s paternal grandparents, both of whom immigrated to the United States from the Netherlands.

George Joseph Hemleb is Zee’s maternal grandfather, and Paula Adeline Wesner is her grandmother.

Zee married WNBC personality Benjamin Aaron Colonomos, also known as Ben Aaron, in August 2013.

On June 7, 2014, the couple married. Adrian Benjamin Colonomos, their first child, was born in Petoskey, Michigan, in December 2015.

Miles Macklin, her second son, was born in February 2018. Manhattan is where the family resides.

Ginger Zee Salary Explored 

According to Celebrity Net Worth, Ginger Zee’s net worth is estimated to be $3 million. Her salary is around $500k per year. 

Being the Chief Meteorologist also comes with an excellent salary.

The majority of her net worth is derived from her work with ABC and her books, which are estimated to be worth $500,000 per year.

Before moving to New York, she worked in the Midwest, including Michigan, Illinois, and Indiana.

She also competed on Dancing With The Stars in 2016, finishing third.