‘Below Deck Mediterranean’ Captain Sandy Yawn Engaged to Partner Leah Shafer: 'I Truly Could Not Wait'

"I have been thinking about marrying Leah for years," Captain Yawn told 'E! News' of the proposal

Captain Sandy Yawn of Bravo's Below Deck Mediterranean has popped the question to her partner of five years Leah Shafer — and she said yes!

"I have been thinking about marrying Leah for years," Yawn told E! News of the proposal, which took place last weekend. "I knew from the minute I met her, but the timing had to be right. I wanted to make sure we could truly do life together first."

Yawn revealed to E! News that Shafer, who is a gospel singer and aesthetician from Denver, inspired the beachside proposal, explaining, "Leah wanted the fairytale, and to me, Leah represents elegance."

"I planned a boat ride to a beautiful cove. I had it decorated with flowers with a path to a small table accompanied by three violinists where we could sit and have a small date," she added of the proposal location.

Related: 'Below Deck' 's Captain Sandy Reveals Girlfriend Leah Has Breast Cancer

The boat captain, 58, said she was so excited to propose to Shafer, 49, that upon arrival, she immediately popped the question.

"I truly could not wait!" she told the outlet. "I shared my vision list of love I had written and wanted, then got on one knee. Then, she said 'yes!' "

Yawn said the moment was filled with joy and emotion, explaining of Shafer, "The look on her face was priceless, and my heart exploded! It was filled beyond capacity of anything I could ever imagine. Somehow I feel closer than I did before, and I can't explain it. There is an energy that I have never experienced in my life. I love her beyond; as Leah says Yawn beyond."

Yawn first revealed she was dating Shafer in May 2019 on X, formerly known as Twitter, by sharing her interview with The Cheat Sheet and writing, “Love is Love!” and “So Happy,” in two separate tweets.

Related: 'Below Deck' Star Captain Sandy Yawn Celebrates 34 Years of Sobriety: ‘I Was Broken’

Opening up about their “unexpected” romance, Yawn said the couple first met on Facebook in June 2018 after Shafer reached out and congratulated her on the Bravo reality series.

“She sent me a nice message that said, ‘I came across your show, congratulations, many blessings,' ” Yawn told the outlet, adding that the inclusion of “many blessings” piqued her interest as a self-proclaimed spiritual person.

After exchanging messages on the social networking platform, the pair finally met in person in Los Angeles where Yawn was living at the time.

Shafer noted the immediate chemistry between the two. “It was definitely unexpected,” she admitted per The Cheat Sheet of their first face-to-face encounter in November 2018. “It just happened, when you meet another soul that you connect with at such a deep level, it is unexplainable and so beautiful.”

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Yawn relocated from Los Angeles to Colorado to live with Shafer.

Yawn has previously opened up in her book Be the Calm or Be the Storm: Leadership Lessons from a Woman at the Helm about the importance of her romance with Shafer, writing, "I believe God has a way of preparing you for 'the one.' He knew I wasn’t ready for her all those years ago. And she wasn’t ready for me. We were both being prepared for each other. God waited for us. He gave me opportunities to make different choices and be more conscious, so that when that sweet little Facebook message came across my page, I was open."

Before Yawn, Shafer was married for 20 years to Ross Shafer, with whom she shares a teenage daughter, Lauren “Lolo” Rae, according to her personal website.

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