LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 21: Etienne Maurice, Sheryl Lee Ralph arrives at the Premiere Of Apple TV +'s "Sidney" at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on September 21, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Steve Granitz/FilmMagic,)
Sheryl Lee Ralph is one proud mother! The Abbott Elementary actress made that clear in two separate interviews about her son Etienne Maurice.
Ralph spoke with Entertainment Tonight about Etienne’s engagement to ABC News’ Stephanie Wash. She also spoke to PEOPLE about how near-death incidents in 2013 have influenced his life.
For those wondering, Sheryl isn’t gatekeeping her son’s love. The entertainer expressed happiness at Wash joining their family.
“I’m so happy, I’m so inspired, I love it! The fact that Stephanie just fits and blends so well into our family, you know, that’s all you can ask, that your children are happy in different stages of their life,” Sheryl Lee Ralph told ET. “Now if I can see that happen for my daughter I will be ecstatic!”
Etienne proposed to Stephanie on July 6 on a New York City rooftop featuring skyline views, red roses, and candles. The couple was surrounded by family, including Ralph, following the proposal. Maurice shared photos of the proposal, revealing that he and Wash went from “strangers to soulmates.” According to ET, they’ve been dating for two years.
The engaged couple is still in the “beginning” stages of planning their big day. And while Lee is ready to be involved at the pair’s command, she says it’s not a demand or necessity on her part. In fact, she’s keeping her wedding day expectations limited and wishing them a day to remember.
“I want the music to be good. I want it to be just wonderfully outstanding because these are the days that, as you go through your marriage, you have to look back on what is probably your happiest day together and remember that day,” Sheryl Lee Ralph said. “When your partner gets on your last nerve, and you need to be reminded, ‘Why did I do this? Why did I get married? What was it again about this person?’ But then, you think about your wedding and go, ‘Oh, now I understand. Now I remember that.’ And then you just shut your mouth, and you just let that go by.”
And like most mamas, Lee hopes to upgrade to “Glam-mom, Glamma, or G-mama” post-wedding–though there’s no timeline. Etienne and Stephanie have not publicly revealed their wedding date.
Sheryl tells PEOPLE that some moments in a child’s life can “bring you to your knees.” For her, those moments came in 2013 when Etienne was involved in two separate incidents–a car accident and a violent mugging.
The car accident left Etienne, a college student at the time, with a concussion that “changed his whole brain,” Sheryl told AARP last month. Then, he was shot three times during a mugging. The shooter left a bullet graze on Etienne’s forehead and two bullets in his leg.
“Sometimes in exhaustion. God’s willing, it is in prayer. People talk about testimony. The test has become a testimony. The pain has brought him through with greater purpose,” she said. “And through his own experiences in life, he is able to be of better help and service to others,” she said.
When Sheryl Lee Ralph first got the news of the mugging incident, she “collapsed and dropped the phone,” per PEOPLE. About a decade later, Sheryl only sees a miracle when she looks at Etienne.
“Through everything my son has gone through, every time I see him I know what a miracle looks like. When I see my son with RunGood, and they do the running through LA, I know how close he came to losing that leg. When I look at that scar, I know how close he came to losing his life,” Ralph added.
In the years since the incidents, Etienne has used those near-death experiences to influence how he impacts his communities. One example is establishing WalkGood. The Los Angeles-based organization focuses on arts, health, and wellness through gatherings, events, and community work.
Sheryl Lee Ralph has been in the news lately discussing her partnership with MadeGood. The food-based company tapped Ralph to help promote their back-to-school campaign for donating to teachers in North America.
