Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek Shed Tears Remembering a Late Friend Who Brought Them Back Together

10/31/2024 02:37 PM

"I don't know if Rob and I would be together to this day because that brought us together," Kostek said

• Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek appeared on an episode of Tyler Henry's Netflix show
• The couple became emotional when the medium asked about Dana, a late friend Gronkowski met at a car dealership
• Kostek recalled how she and the former tight end supported each other in grief after Dana's death

Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek shared an emotional moment with medium Tyler Henry while remembering the late mutual friend who brought the couple back together.

In a clip from the Tuesday, Oct. 29 episode of Netflix's Live From the Other Side with Tyler Henry, the model, 32, and the former NFL star, 35, became teary-eyed when Henry asked about a middle-aged friend who died from a heart condition.

Gronkowski identified the friend as Dana, a "real fun" guy who was one of the first people he met after the New England Patriots drafted him in 2010.

"I was kind of in a hurry, and an oil change takes 30 minutes, but he had me in his office for four hours. He was that entertaining," Gronkowski shared.

Gronkowski remembered Dana "just loved to talk and loved to be the center of attention," he said. "And I loved to sit there and watch him go. He was so fun to be around, he loved being a kid, he didn't want to grow up."

The retired tight end — who spent nine seasons in New England alongside Tom Brady and Bill Belichick — revealed that Dana "just passed out of nowhere one night," which also happened to be at a time when Gronkowski and Kostek had been broken up.

Related: Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek's Relationship Timeline

Kostek said she learned about Dana's passing in a text message that night. "Rob was there in the hospital," she recalled, "and in his phone, he's 'Dana Oil Change' to this day," Kostek shared with a laugh.

"But what's so interesting about that night," she continued, "Is that Rob and I were broken up."

Kostek explained that it was "the first time" she and Gronkowski had parted ways, calling the period of time her "deepest heartbreak" and admitting she "kind of thought that was the end of us."

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When Dana died, Kostek hadn't heard from Gronkowski for a couple of months, she shared, describing their mutual friend as "like the glue to our relationship a lot."

"And I woke up to a text that Dana had passed," Kostek recalled.

In supporting each other in their grief, the couple got back together. "I don't know if Rob and I would be together to this day because that brought us together, and it was Rob's first funeral," Kostek said through tears on the episode.

Related: Camille Kostek Credits Rob Gronkowski's Near Career-Ending Injury in 2013 for 'Long-Lasting Relationship'

After Dana's death, Gronkowski wasn't sure how to properly grieve during the NFL season, Kostek explained, recalling that he asked her advice on whether or not he should go to practice at the time. She said she remembered telling him that Coach Belichick would understand if he took time off to grieve the loss.

The couple seemed wowed by Henry's reading, and Gronkowski said he was "spot on" during the session.

Gronkowski first met the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit model at a Goodwill charity event in 2013. In 2015, PEOPLE reported that they were an item after Kostek was spotted cheering the star player on in the stands at one of his games.