Nate Berkus is such an awesome, kind soul! I loved watching him on The Oprah Winfrey Show. He runs a Chicago interior design firm called Nate Berkus Associates and has released several product lines, and authored numerous books. In 2010 he debuted his own show, The Nate Berkus Show, featuring personal advice, make-overs, culture and design. The show ran for two years and ended on May 24, 2012.

When designer Nate Berkus came out to his family his father had the hardest time. He came to a moment with his father’s relationship where he had to explain in a way that he could understand that he doesn’t choose this lifestyle, that he was born this way. After that conversation the two were able to move forward in their relationship. As Oprah would say, they had a huge a-ha moment. Watch as Nate shares the story of the conversation that moved their relationship forward.

In December 2004 Berkus was dating photographer Fernando Bengoechea. The two decided to vacation to Sri Lanka. While on a beach there a tsunami hit, Berkus survived, and Bengoechea went missing and was presumed dead. He later appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show on January 17, 2005 to talk about the loss of his partner.

Nate started dating Jeremiah Brent they and got engaged in April 2013. They married a year later in New York City and on March 23, 2015 they welcomed a beautiful baby girl into their life, Poppy Brent-Berkus.

Image by © Christopher Peterson/Splash News/Corbis

In 2014 Berkus and Brent were the first gay couple featured in Banana Republic’s campaign.  “True Outfitters” ad was in InStyle and Rolling Stone, among other magazines. Also The New York Times noted they were the first same-sex couple to be featured in ads for the magazines. (Below)