“Summer House: Martha's Vineyard”'s Preston Mitchum Is Engaged! See His Proposal to Fiancé Donald Cooley (Exclusive)
"In a world where love between Black queer men isn't always acknowledged or celebrated, we stand proudly together on this beautiful road together," the pair tell PEOPLE
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
Preston Mitchum and Donald CooleyBravo to Preston Mitchum!
The Summer House: Martha's Vineyard star is engaged, after he popped the question to now-fiancé Donald Cooley during a European getaway on Tuesday, April 9.
PEOPLE can report the happy news exclusively, along with photos of the pair, snapped moments after Cooley said "Yes."
"We, Preston and Donald, joyfully announce our recent engagement while traveling in Madrid, Spain," the couple, who dated for three years before their engagement, tell PEOPLE in a statement.
"In a world where love between Black queer men isn't always acknowledged or celebrated, we stand proudly together on this beautiful road together," they continue. "Our journey is a testament to the beauty and strength of love in all its forms and a commitment to always love and learn from each other. With hearts full of gratitude, we look forward to writing the next chapter of our lives together."
Here everything to know about their happy moment:
"Will You Marry Me?"
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
Mitchum, 38, asked Cooley, 33, to marry him during the dessert portion of the 10-course meal at Ramón Freixa Madrid. The reality star smartly hired two photographers to pose as diners at the restaurant, so they could capture the happy moment.
"He was so genuinely shocked it happened — thought he suspected something!" Mitchum says. "So that made it even better."
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Sealed with a Kiss
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
The two meet in late 2019 on Jack'd, a gay dating app.
"Don’t believe what people say about particular apps," explains Mitchum. "He stumbled on my page and sent me a message. I loved what I saw. His page was very chill and fun at the same time, and it piqued my interest."
Related: Summer House: Martha's Vineyard Star Jasmine Ellis Cooper Welcomes First Baby with Husband Silas
Smiling Ear to Ear
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
After the proposal, Mitchum and Cooley posed for a series of pictures together outside the restaurant. Madrid was the second stop they made on their romantic getaway, that began in Paris and has now extended to Barcelona.
"We usually take two big international trips a year and this one just felt right to pop the question," says Mitchum. "In our conversation about engagements and marriage, we already knew we didn’t want those dates to be stereotypical or around dates that were already of distance to us (birthdays, holidays, etc.). So this made sense to me, since we were already on our usual romantic/lit excursion."
Diamonds Are a Guy's Best Friend, Too!
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
The ring Mitchum picked is a “Streamline Three Row Band Ring” from luxury jewelry brand David Yurman.
Featuring strips of pavé-set black diamonds — 1.95 total carat weight, surrounded by a sterling silver band — the piece proved to be the perfect pic for Mitchum.
Related: The Most Jaw-Dropping Celebrity Engagement Rings
"Forever" Has a Nice Ring to It
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
"I loved the cut and color of the ring," Mitchum says. "Black is classic and black diamonds made it even better. And Black men deserve that too!"
He didn't get himself one, though — something same-sex couples often do when proposing. "But I did send his friends some of my favorite choices..." he laughs.
A D.C. Duo
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
Mitchum and Cooley went on their first date in January 2020 at Denson Liquor Bar, a speakeasy in Washington, D.C..
From the start, the two — who live together now in the District of Columbia — had a lot in common. Both are lawyers, with Cooley working in corporate finance and Mitchum running his own consulting firm, PDM Consulting LLC.
Related: Bravo's Winter House Is 'on Pause' After 3 Seasons (Exclusive)
Free to Be in Love
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
Asked what he loves about their relationship, Mitchum got candid.
"I don’t pretend relationships are easy, they aren’t. But they just shouldn’t feel laborious. They shouldn’t feel suffocating. They should feel free," he says. "Free to be yourself. Free to want to communicate. Free to want to be silent in moments. Free to be honest about what is going well. Free to discuss what may require a bit more effort. Free to define your terms even when it wouldn’t make sense to others. Free."
"Donald and I are all of these things and more," Mitchum adds, noting, "Sometimes, the most gentle moments are sitting together scrolling through social media and sharing tweets we find funny. Other times it’s partying at the club until 3am until one of you taps the other on the shoulder to say, 'I’m ready to go to sleep.' "
Will This Milestone Moment Be a Bravo First?
Karen Vallejo and Diego Madronero
Bravo viewers have heard Mitchum gush about Cooley before, though he hasn't been a regular on Summer House: Martha's Vineyard — the Summer House spinoff that premiered in May 2023 and is now in airing its second season. But Mitchum teases that Cooley might make an appearance this season.
As for their wedding, Mitchum's "certainly open" to saying his "I dos" in front of the Bravo cameras.
"It's something we've never seen before," he says of the historic possibility of airing a Black gay wedding — but notes, "our guest list will be THICK."
Summer House: Martha's Vineyard airs Sundays (9 p.m. ET) on Bravo.
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