Gio Benitez gets a surprise birthday message on ‘Good Morning America’

In case you missed it, ABC’s Good Morning America marked the birthday of weekend co-anchor Gio Benitez with some surprises yesterday.

First of all, they brought out Benitez’s husband, Tommy DiDario, who had commissioned a special Harry Potter cake for his partner. Benitez, who turned 38, is a huge Potter fan.

Secondly, they also got singer Gloria Estafan to send Benitez a special birthday message.

Estefan was born in Cuba, but her family emigrated to Miami when she was just two years old. Benitez was born in Miami to Cuban parents.

Watch the cute segment below.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gio Benitez (@giobenitez)

Last year, Benitez reported on the New York City Pride parade. He went viral for a segment in which he recounted his coming out to his mom when he was 24.

“I went into it knowing you had to give room and space to understanding. I did not expect her to understand in 24 hours what took me 24 years.

“But incredibly, when I told her … it was a very emotional experience, she was scared when I was struggling to get the words out. And I told her and I said, ‘I’m gay’, and she … had a sigh of relief and said, ‘I thought you were going to tell me something is wrong’.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Good Morning America (@goodmorningamerica)

Benitez and DiDario—also a TV host, reporter and podcaster—met via Instagram in January 2015. They became engaged in Paris in September 2015. They married in Miami on April 16, 2016.

DiDario shared more photos of Benitez with his birthday cake on his Instagram.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tommy DiDario (@tommydidario)

Benitez joined Good Morning America as a reporter in 2013. He was promoted to weekend co-anchor in May of this year.

Here’s the emotional moment he took up his new role.

Related:

Migguel Anggelo Explores His Queer, Latino, and Immigrant Identities in Upcoming Production English with an Accent

Some folks are really good at one thing. Maybe it’s dancing, singing, or acting, but for Migguel Anggelo it’s all of the above and then some.

Oscar Montoya Wants More Latine And Queer People In Front Of and Behind The Cameras

“Straight people have been taking gay roles from gay people all the time, since the dawn of cinema. I can do that too.”