<\/p>\n
Television crews for the Oprah Winfrey Network visited Dolores last month to shoot a reality show about a local man engaged to pop singer Michelle Williams.<\/p>\n
\u201cChad Loves Michelle\u201d features Dolores native Chad Johnson\u2019s relationship with Williams, of the hit R&B band Destiny\u2019s Child.<\/p>\n
The series will premiere on the OWN channel Nov. 3 (9-10 p.m. Eastern time. The episode focusing on Chad\u2019s home town is expected to air Nov. 10 at the same time.<\/p>\n
Filming occurred for two days at locations in Dolores and at the Circle K Ranch, said longtime local Jim Koenig, Johnson\u2019s grandfather.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a spectacle, with the camera crews and interviews,\u201d said Koenig, 87. \u201cIt was different to be in the spotlight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson, 40, grew up and went to school in Dolores. He found success in the ministry and as a life coach and has served as chaplain for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Dodgers.<\/p>\n
The home-grown pastor started his own spiritual retreat program in Phoenix that Williams, 37, attended. The chance meeting sparked the beginning of their relationship, and the couple\u2019s engagement was recently featured in People Magazine.<\/p>\n
Williams, along with Beyonc\u00e9 Knowles and Kelly Rowland, formed Destiny\u2019s Child, which became one of the best-selling female R&B groups of all time and sold 60 million records. Williams has also released pop and gospel solo albums. Destiny\u2019s Child performed for the Super Bowl halftime show in 2013.<\/p>\n
The couple plans to get married, but a date and time has not been set.<\/p>\n
\u201cChad Loves Michelle,\u201d from Relev\u00e9 Entertainment and InventTV, will feature an honest inside look at the path to marriage between the Grammy-award winning pop singer and sports team chaplain, according to a Sept. 20 OWN press release.<\/p>\n
The couple\u2019s traditional, faith-based approach is a focus of the show.<\/p>\n
\u201cHaving been together for a year and never in the same city for more than seven days, the newly engaged couple is turning to intensive premarital counseling to help prepare them for life together as husband and wife,\u201d the press release states.<\/p>\n
Both are relocating to Los Angeles from different cities in the months leading up to their wedding, but not to the same bedroom.<\/p>\n
\u201cGuided by their faith and unwavering values, the couple has vowed to consummate the relationship only after they are wed,\u201d according to the press release. \u201cEach episode will feature real issues the couple is tackling in their everyday lives, including Michelle\u2019s high-profile battle with mental health issues, and the lessons they learn from the premarital counseling sessions that bond them stronger together.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chad\u2019s brother, Brandon Johnson, general manager of Montezuma Valley Irrigation Co., participated in the two days of filming with his brother and Williams and hosted a barbecue for the couple that local friends also attended.<\/p>\n
Williams was treated to horseback riding at Circle K Ranch, and got a fishing lesson on the Dolores River. She was amazed by the scenic San Juan Mountains bordered by red rock desert, Brandon said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it was her first go-around at fishing. We all had fun, and got to know each other,\u201d he said. \u201cThey make a nice couple. She\u2019s like the rest of us, down home and down-to-earth, not flashy like you might think with a celebrity. He made a real good choice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Part of the filming was done at the popular burger joint The Depot, Koenig said, and at his home on Fifth Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll the regular customers looked pretty surprised when they came in for lunch and saw the lights, microphones and camera crews,\u201d Koenig said.<\/p>\n
On whether Williams might perform locally, Koenig said \u201che\u2019d pass on\u201d the idea.<\/p>\n
The TV trucks in front of his grandfather\u2019s house drew some onlookers too, Brandon added. \u201cThe neighbors came out and were like \u2018What is going on?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Chad Johnson is the son of Monte and Barbie Johnson.<\/p>\n