Sweet Georgia native Charity Lawson, star of this season of ‘The Bachelorette,” has picked her man: integrative medicine specialist Dotun Olubeko.
“There is so much we experienced from our first kiss at the mansion all the way to conquering our fears 200 feet in the air, running through New Orleans, and most importantly, falling in love,” Dotun told Charity in the final episode that aired Monday on ABC. “You have been able to make me feel so incredibly special. You’ve made me feel adored and validated and wanted. And to receive that from a woman of your caliber, I don’t think you’ll ever understand what that means to me, but I’m certain that I want to spend the rest of my life showing you. 100 percent.”
Charity told him: “You made me feel alive. You made me believe in love again. You made me feel so valued and so seen. I see you as my husband. I see you as my future. I see it so clear and I don’t have any doubts. I love you so much.”
And good news: After three-plus months of keeping their engagement under wraps, they were able to announce Monday that they remain together.
“We’ve anticipated this moment,” Charity said during the “After the Rose” special. “Just to be free and in public, to live lives normally. This is everything.”
During the finale, which was taped in April, Lawson chose Doten over tennis pro Joey Graziadei, who got a nice consolation prize: he will be the “Bachelor” for the show’s 28th season.
Lawson, a child and family therapist who grew up in Columbus and now lives in Auburn, Alabama, also announced she will be joining the next season of “Dancing With the Stars,” which returns to ABC this fall after a season on Disney+.
In an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution last month after she had trimmed the list of 25 bachelors to 10, she said this about Dotun: “I like his sincerity. Every time we’re having a conversation, the way he speaks, he speaks with such conviction. I don’t have to question his intentions.”
