I am late to the whole 'Nate Berkus' story and could someone answer a question or two. Was he out before the whole Tsumani thing? Checking back I see reports that his "friend" was missing and then later reports that it was his partner. Did Berkus come out as a result of this whole thing? I haven't seen any word about him in the gay magazines so I am wondering if he really wanted to be outed at all.

Anyone know how long he and his partner had been togther?

He sure seems like a decent guy on Oprah.

I never got the feeling he was in the closet...he just didn't make it an issue. I don't remember him doing the pronoun game...but I could be wrong.

It seems like Fernando and Nate had been together for a few years...apparently, he was an accomplished photographer who shot many of Nate's decorating jobs. I think this is how they met.

I had always wondered about his orientation before the tsunami disaster; this tragedy confirmed it for me. Such a sad series of events he endured.

There are a couple of other threads about Nate on Outsports, we love him, too. I think that he wasn't out in the media but it seems that he was out in his personal and away-from-the-Oprah-show professional life. Kirstie Alley had mentioned how when Nate redid her kitchen, she invited him and Fernando over for a kitchen party. He has always acted like a very genuine, caring guy and it really does seem like he's a very nice guy who cares a lot about others. I've prayed a lot for him and his and Fernando's families. He seems to be handling the situation very well and the fact that he is able to talk about the tragedy and look at it from a different perspective are good signs of progress.