Television star Danielle Staub most notably known from The Real Housewives of New Jersey, is engaged. After quietly dating Joseph Masalta, a Navy SEAL Special Warfare and intelligence expert, the couple is officially announcing their engagement.

“I am thrilled to be engaged to Joseph, he is an extraordinary an honorable man, and I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life,” says Staub.

danielle staub

The couple met at a charity event, and Joseph says that he was immediately smitten, “Danielle is the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met in my life, inside and out, and I am head-over-heels in love with her,” Joseph gushes.

Masalta was a Navy SEAL for 16 years and served on SEAL Team One, SEAL Team Three, and Naval Special Warfare Group One. Most recently, he led maritime anti-piracy security details in the Arabian Sea and protection detail missions in the Middle East. In recent years, he founded Masalta International, an executive security, counterterrorism, and intelligence consultancy. In addition, Joseph has started several organizations and groups that promote fitness and community.

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Danielle says she took a break from the limelight to focus on her daughters, “My children are everything to me and they needed their mom, so I decided to take some time off to focus on my family.”

Danielle says her new life with Joseph is a far cry from the drama that surrounded her on Housewives, “Nobody is perfect and I think we all learned and grew from that experience,” says Danielle, “I’ve turned a new leaf in life and \ carry no ill-will towards my former co-stars,” adding, “I wish them nothing but the best.”

danielle staub

Danielle and Joseph have not yet set a wedding date but say they will tie the knot in 2016, “We are happy, peaceful and grateful to spend the rest of our lives together.”

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