Laurie Cumbo, commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affair, got the shock of her life when she was proposed to by her partner of eight years, the father of her son, former NY State Assemblyman, Bobby Dizzy Olisa on the steps of Metropolitan Museum of Art, Red Carpet during the Met Gala, in front of celebrities, and thousands more watching on television, as the historic night of fashion returned after two years of postponements due the pandemic.
Cumbo, MoCADA founder, put her white gloved hand to her mouth in surprise, as Bobby Dizzy Olisa, went down on one knee and held the Tiffany box out to her.
But before accepting the box with the diamond ring, she held on to her fiancée’s neck for dear life, as tears filled her eyes and she continued with a lovable embrace.
When she finally let loose, she accepted the precious diamond, and shouted yes! with glee, as a TV personality, asked, did you say yes! She then yelled again, yes and walked before the cameras to explained that she has been in a relationship for eight years and shared that the couple has a son together.
Cumbo, wearing an off-white gown, designed with broad shoulder straps, shared that she was an intern when she first visited the Met and that this was the first time she was attending as a guest.
MoCADA said in a statement, “we are thrilled that our founder and current commissioner of the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, Laurie Cumbo, has been proposed by her partner – former NY State Assemblyman, Bobby Dizzy Olisa — on the stairs of the Metropolitan Museum of Art during 2022 at the Met Gala.
“I think it’s the perfect full circle moment, with Laurie going from intern at the Met as a teen to getting engaged on red carpet stages. It’s a beautiful NYC love story that thrives in a pandemic situation. Black love, black joy, I am here for all of this! It is exciting for the whole MoCADA family,” said Amy Andreux, executive director and chief curator at the Museum of Contemporary African Diaspora Art.
According to New York News, the museum was founded in 1999 by Laurie Cumbo in a brownstone owned by Bridge Street AWME Church in the Bedford-Stuyvesant community of Brooklyn, New York.
The MoCADA concept evolved from Ms. Cumbo’s graduate thesis at New York University, which focused on its feasibility. An African Diaspora Museum contributes to the revitalization of central Brooklyn economically, socially, politically and aesthetically.
