Below Deck’s Hugo Recalls Leaving Jehovah’s Witnesses’ at 17: ‘Getting Away From the Life I Had’

Below Deck’s Hugo Ortega recalled his complicated relationship with religion — and his family — after being a Jehovah’s Witness.

During the Monday, July 21, episode of the hit Bravo series, Hugo opened up about his childhood, sharing, “I got into yachting probably like a lot of other people. I was traveling and getting away from the life I had before.”

The bosun revealed he “grew up as a Jehovah’s Witness” before leaving it behind.

“I didn’t celebrate birthdays or Christmas. But I left when I was 17,” he explained. “Me leaving the religion is a huge point of conversation with my parents. I know for them there is a lot of guilt and they think they didn’t instill things in me properly. It is a sore topic.”

Hugo continued: “But I don’t think there is anything wasted. What would have been wasted if I had stayed in that life that I didn’t like.”

This isn’t the first time a Below Deck cast member discussed their tense history with religion. Below Deck stew Cat Baugh previously shared on an episode of the show about her “trauma” from her time in a religious cult.

“I was in foster care. My dad passed away when I was 9 from Multiple sclerosis. And then my mom passed away when I was 13 just in her sleep. It was very sudden and no [they don’t know what it was],” she said in a February 2024 episode. “So me and my brother were thrown into the system and separated.”

According to Cat, she was cared for by a controlling group of people, adding, “The family I lived with I don’t talk to because they were like a cult religion.”

Cat’s foster family wouldn’t allow her to remain in touch with her brother.

“We were [in the same state]. But they wouldn’t even let me talk to him because he wasn’t religious,” she continued. “It was that extreme of a religion that they wouldn’t even let me speak to my own biological brother.”

In a confessional, Cat offered more details about her difficult home life, sharing, “So I grew up in Orange County, California, with a foster family in a place called Yorba Linda. From 13 to 18, I was a part of this family’s culture and life and dynamic.”

It wasn’t until Cat turned 18 that she was able to take control of her life.

“Because I wanted to continue a relationship with my biological brother, they were like, ‘No. We don’t support that,'” she continued. “Once I turned 18, I decided to choose my brother and choose my life. I decided to live for myself and that’s when I became the most independent. Now me and my brother are so close. He’s like my best friend.”

Elsewhere in Monday’s episode, chef Anthony Iracane confronted chief steward Fraser Olender about his issues from last season. Rainbeau de Roos, meanwhile, continued to grow frustrated with Solène Favreau and even claimed she was only working for the reality TV exposure.

This season’s love triangle — or pentagon? — got even more complicated when Solène kissed Damo Yorg. The episode ended with Barbara Kulaif and Jess Theron exploring their chemistry in front of the rest of the crew.

Below Deck airs on Bravo Mondays at 8 p.m. ET. New episodes stream the next day on Peacock.