Sam Champion shares his bliss with GMA viewers

Whether news of Sam Champion being gay was surprising to you or not, news of his engagement to Rubem Robierb is certainly cause for celebration.

And what’s so great – aside from Sam and Rubem having found each other, of course – is that Sam is such a high-profile television personality who has gone public about his personal life.

On Monday, three days after the engagement was reported in a story in The New York Times, Sam made clear that he is beginning a new era as an openly gay television personality.

Rubem was backstage when anchor George Stephanopoulos said to Sam: ‘I just want to thank you for starting out our week in such a happy way.’

News of the engagement had quickly spread on Twitter Friday and Stephanopoulos observed how wonderful it must be for the couple ‘to feel all that love coming in from all over the world.’

Champion said the response has indeed been overwhelming.

‘I felt like we lived in a small town… I was born in Paducah, Kentucky, and to me that’s exactly what it felt like. We walked out on the street and everyone was like, ‘Hey, congratulations,’’ he said. ‘Thank you for the tweets, and the Facebook and just coming up on the street and saying the most wonderful things.’

The engagement news was the first public confirmation Champion had made that he is gay although he has long been out in his private life.

‘I never saw this coming in my life until I met the most wonderful, giving, loving, caring person I think on the planet,’ he gushed as the GMA camera panned to a beaming Robierb. ‘I am so, so lucky to have someone like this in my life.’