Are Gerry & Theresa Still Together After The Golden Wedding? Where the 1st Golden Bachelor Couple Is Now

Are Gerry and Theresa still together from The Golden Bachelor?

Are Gerry and Theresa still together from The Golden Bachelor 2023? The answer is yes. Gerry Turner, a 72-year-old Retired Restauranteur, and Theresa Nist, a 70-year-old Financial Services Professional from Shrewsbury, New Jersey, are still together after they got engaged in The Golden Bachelor Season 1 finale, according to Reality Steve.

Gerry gave his final rose and proposed to Theresa at the Final Rose Ceremony after rejecting his runner-up, Leslie Fhima, a 64-year-old Fitness Instructor from Minneapolis, Minnesota. His third place finalist, Faith Martin, a 60-year-old High School Teacher from Benton City, Washington, was eliminated after Hometown Dates.

For Gerry’s engagement, it’s almost certain the ring was designed by Neil Lane, a celebrity jeweler, who has created engagement rings for The Bachelor, The Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise since 2008. In a 2016 interview with Entertainment Weekly, former host Chris Harrison revealed that Bachelor Nation couples have to stay together for a certain amount of time, otherwise they have to return the free engagement ring to Neil Lane. “There’s some rule, after a certain number of years, you get to keep it anyway,” he said. “But after months… it goes back.”

Lane told StyleCaster in 2016 that he doesn’t know where the rings go, but that he designs them with the hope that the couple to stays together. “I make rings hoping that people stay together forever, but after they get the ring, I don’t have a say in it, and what happens after that, I don’t know,” he said. “Where the ring goes, I have to say, I don’t really know. I just say it goes to ring heaven.”

Before who Gerry picked on The Golden Bachelor was confirmed by Reality Steve, fans speculated that Gerry chose Leslie based on a TikTok video Leslie posted in September 2023 of her and her granddaughter, Kiki, dancing, which fans believed Gerry recorded. “Whoever is filming starts to laugh and it weirdly sounds like Gerry’s laugh,” a Reddit user wrote. “I think he ends up with Leslie just from that video… that’s my guess!” Another commented on Leslie’s Instagram, “Ummm did I hear a tiny Gerry laugh from behind the camera?”

Fans also suspected that Gerry chose Leslie based on a video interview Gerry did with Us Weekly, which showed a woman in a mirror behind Gerry that looked like Leslie. “From the hair color, I think it’s Leslie,” a user commented on a video of TikTok account @ShesAllBach’s repost of the video.

Gerry and Theresa confirmed they were still together in an interview with People after The Golden Bachelor Season 1 finale. “What I reminded myself of frequently, is that I’m there to find the one person that’s right for me,” Gerry said. “It boiled down to that one important question: Who’s the one woman I can’t live without?”

Though he wanted to tell Theresa during his proposal that she was the one he couldn’t live without, Gerry explained to People that he messed up his words. “I go through a small speech and I look at her and say, ‘But Theresa, you’re not the person that I can live with,’ and have a long pause,” he said. “And what I actually said was, ‘Theresa, you’re not the [right] person for me,’ which is much more harsh.”

Theresa added, “I start slinking away,” she says. “I was like, ‘Somebody catch me, somebody catch me.’” Gerry continued, “I quickly said the right line, ‘Theresa, you are the person I can’t live without,’ and the air went back into her body.”

Theresa, however, felt like it took a while for Gerry to correct his words. “It seemed like an eternity,” she said. “I said, ‘Oh, my god. So what he said was not true. He changed his mind, he changed his mind. Somebody get me, somebody take me away.” And then he said the right thing, thank God.”

In the end, Gerry called the proposal “pretty magical” especially because his daughters and granddaughters were with him for the moment. “Because of the way the sun was and the walk that Theresa had to do, she was a silhouette for an awfully long time. And my daughters tell me, ‘Please let it be Theresa. Please let it be Teresa,’” Gerry said. “And when the light hit enough so that they could see that it was her, they were ecstatic. They were in tears. They were thrilled.”

He continued, “So I’m very happy that that’s their reaction because I do rely on them a lot to reinforce decisions that I’ve tentatively made.”

As for Theresa, she told People that she “fell in love with Gerry” during their Hometown Date. “​​They were just so excited about him,” she said of her family’s reaction to Gerry. “Oh my gosh. When I came home — and my daughter’s really the only one who really knows what happened — when I pulled up in their driveway, it was like a welcoming committee, like screaming and screaming and so happy. My daughter loves Gerry, as does everybody.”

In between the time they got engaged and The Golden Bachelor Season 1 finale airing, Gerry and Theresa kept in touch via phone calls and texts. “To me, the texting is fun,” Gerry said. “She’ll have a day with [her grandson] Henry and it’s like, I’m hearing by text, and it’s so fun to imagine how things would be if I was actually able to be there and be involved. It’s not going to be a surprise when I actually get to see them again, and catching up will be much easier.”

Theresa added that her and Gerry’s nightly phone calls would sometimes last “for hours.” “I’ll lie down on the floor and close my eyes so I can concentrate on the conversation, and it’s been phenomenal,” she said. “We really have so much more in common that we even initially knew.”

Where are Gerry and Theresa now after The Golden Wedding?

Where are Gerry and Theresa now after The Golden Wedding? Gerry and Theresa confirmed during The Golden Bachelor “After the Final Rose” special that they plan on marrying in a live wedding special, titled The Golden Wedding, on ABC. Gerry and Theresa married on January 4, 2024.

In an inteview with People ahead of their wedding, Gerry and Theresa opened up what it was like to have their dream wedding in their ’70s. “See, you’ve got to remember, Theresa didn’t get — her first time around, she didn’t have much time to plan and really, I didn’t either,” Gerry said, referring to Theresa’s first marriage to her childhood sweetheart Billy, who was drafted during the Vietnam War while she was in her first year of college.

Gerry also had a similar experience when it came to his low-key wedding when he married his first wife, Toni. “We didn’t have a whole lot of time and [we were] pretty broke, both of us,” he said. “So this is kind of big. We want to make it so we don’t miss any of the moments.”

Gerry and Theresa also revealed their friends and family’s reactions to their fast marriage. “I had my family along — my daughters — from the beginning to the end and they were just pulling for us that we would be happy at the end,” Gerry said. “They were excited.”

Theresa, for her part, admitted that some of her friends were skeptical of her wedding to Gerry. “I would say my friends who didn’t know until when it really was announced, they just wanted to make sure, ‘Are you really in love? Are you really happy?’ Yes, I am,” she said. “And as soon as they knew that, they were satisfied and happy and really onboard.”

Gerry and Theresa also explained why they wanted to marry so soon after their engagement. “​​When you’re in your 20s and you put something off for a year, it’s a very small percentage of your life,” Gerry said. “In your 70s, the clock ticks faster. And I’m 100% certain I found the right girl for me. So it’s like, why not?”

Theresa added, “I met the man of my dreams. It wasn’t our original timeline, but to be presented with the wedding of our dreams? Spectacular, incredible, wow!” Gerry, for his part, also told People that he wanted Theresa to have the fairytale wedding of her dreams because she didn’t have it the first time she married.

“Since she’d sort of gotten the hurry-up job the first time, I wanted her to be able to savor all of the anticipation and the joy and the planning and everything. That was my only question is, ‘Are you okay with the timeline? Do you feel like you get cheated a little bit in it?’ And it doesn’t sound like she’s getting cheated,” he said.

In an interview with People after The Golden Bachelor Season 1 finale, Gerry revealed that he told Theresa he planned to propose to her during their Fantasy Suite Date. “Part of our conversation in the Fantasy Suites [was] the first time really that I seriously told her that I loved her,” Gerry said. “It was almost an announcement of excitement. I said it three times in a row, ‘Theresa, I love you. I love you, I love you.’ And I go, ‘And I’m going to ask you to marry me. I don’t know if you’re going to say yes, but I’m going to ask you.’ So for me, when I got to the final episode and the engagement was about to happen, I was very confident that she was my person, 100 percent confident.”

While Gerry felt “confident that she was going to say ‘yes’ to me,” he acknowledged that Theresa “didn’t quite have the whole story” going into his proposal. “When she came down the walkway, she didn’t know if she was the first person making that walk or the second person or the only person,” Gerry said. “​​Not once did I think I was the only person,” Theresa added. “I was confident, but then, let’s see, actually, if this really happens.”

Gerry and Theresa also revealed what viewers didn’t see during their Fantasy Suite Date. “What they didn’t see in the Fantasy Suites was everything,” Theresa said. “When he presented me with the Fantasy Suite card, I was so enthusiastically accepting it because I really wanted to go in and delve deeper. And that’s what we did. It was the first time I really showed my true personality to him. He did know, but not as in-depth.”

Gerry added, “In my head, I had this checklist of four or five things that, ‘I got to know this stuff.’ And so she accepted to go into the Fantasy Suite, and those four or five things, before I even had a chance to ask them, she was like, spouting it out there. She was like, ‘Okay, and this is going to happen, and I want you to know this and this.’ And it’s like, ‘Oh my God, we are exactly on the same page.’”

Theresa added that “it just clicked” for her and Gerry in that moment. “After that episode, I called Theresa on the phone, and I said, ‘You know, I just watched myself fall in love with you,’” Gerry said. Theresa, for her part, told People that she started feeling something for Gerry once she stepped out of the limo on Night One. “I walked out of that limo, not knowing or not expecting anything, just [that] there’s a great adventure and maybe there would be love,” she said. “But getting out of that limo, I stood next to him and I went, ‘Oh my God, I’m so attracted to this man. I’m in real trouble.’ I got butterflies immediately.”

Gerry also explained why he gave Theresa his first One-on-One date, which he called “over-the-moon spectacular.” “She got my attention when I had the physical reaction to her putting her hand on my shoulder when we were in the Corvette,” Gerry said. “The headlights were failing and so forth, and I was really nervous. And she put her hand on my shoulder and I could physically feel the tension drain out of me. And it’s like, ‘OK, now I know that I need to really pay close attention to this person.’”

Gerry added, “We were both able to talk nonstop and look at each other and still hear what the other person had to say. I got home that night. It’s like, ‘That was pretty amazing.’ Usually you don’t listen to the other person, and I was genuinely listening and I couldn’t shut up. It was great.”

Gerry explained that, while he always had other women on The Golden Bachelor, he would continue to go back to Theresa. “I would keep going back and thinking of her,” he said. “There’s a certain quality about Theresa that, whenever I hear her voice, whether it’s in the background or on the phone, I almost chuckle because I know she’s enthusiastic about whatever it is she’s doing.”

Theresa said of Gerry, “He is so positive and outgoing and dynamic and has ambition and drive and is exciting,” she gushes. “He wants to have a really great life and he’s excited about every single moment of his life, and I am too.We have a lot of fun and it’s better and better every time we talk. We both know we made the right decision.”

Who is Theresa from The Golden Bachelor?

Who is Theresa from The Golden Bachelor? Theresa Nist is a 70-year-old Financial Services Professional from Shrewsbury, New Jersey. She was one of Gerry’s two finalists on The Golden Bachelor Season 1.

Read Theresa’s biography for The Golden Bachelor Season 1 ahead:

“Theresa is a gorgeous catch with a huge heart. She is very close with her children and grandchildren, and loves nothing more than seeing them all thrive. Theresa describes herself as optimistic, encouraging, and ready to love again after loss. She hopes to meet a partner who will be her best friend in this next chapter of life and will appreciate all the little moments with her. When she’s not spending time with her family, Theresa enjoys playing board games, gardening, reading romance novels, and hula hooping. Theresa is here for the real deal, and fingers crossed it’s all fireworks when she meets the Golden Bachelor!

Fun Facts:
● Theresa loves to sing … alone in her car.
● Theresa taught herself all about the stock market
● Theresa loves ’70s rock, both soft and hard.”

Who’s in The Golden Bachelor cast? 

Read on for a full list of contestants in The Golden Bachelor Season 1 cast below. 

• Anna Zalk, 61; Summit, New Jersey — Retired Nutritionist
• April Kirkwood, 65; Port St. Lucie, Florida — Therapist
• Christina Kempton, 74; Sierra Madre, California — Retired Purchasing Manager
• Edith Aguirre, 60; Downey, California — Retired Realtor
• Faith Martin, 61; Benton City, Washington — High School Teacher
• Jeanie Howard, 65; Estill Springs, Tennessee — Retired Project Manager
• Joan Vassos, 60; Rockville, Maryland — Private School Administrator
• Kathy Swarts, 70; Austin, Texas — Retired Education Consultant
• Leslie Fhima, 64; Golden Valley, Minnesota — Fitness Instructor 
• Mara Trice, 60; Teaneck, New Jersey — Health & Wellness Director
• Marina Perera, 60; Los Angeles, California — Educator
• Nancy Hulkower, 60; Alexandria, Virginia — Retired Interior Designer
• Natascha Hardee, 60; New York City, New York — Pro-Aging coach & Midlife Speaker
• Pamela Burns, 75; Aurora, Illinois — Retired Salon Owner
• Patty James, 70; Raleigh, North Carolina — Retired Real Estate Professional
• Peggy Dercole, 69; East Haven, Connecticut — Dental Hygenist
• Renee Halverson-Wright, 67; Middleton, Wisconsin — Author
• Sandra Mason, 75; Doraville, Georgia — Retired Executive Assistant
• Susan Noles, 66; Aston, Pennsylvania — Wedding Officiant
• Sylvia Robledo, 64; Los Angeles, California — Public Affairs Consultant
• Theresa Nist, 70; Shrewsbury, New Jersey — Financial Services Professional

Who is the next Bachelor for 2024?

Who is the next Bachelor for 2024? Joey Graziadei, a 28-year-old professional tennis player from Koloa, Hawaii, and the runner-up on The Bachelorette Season 20 with Charity Lawson, was announced as the Season 28 Bachelor at The Bachelorette Season 20 “After the Final Rose” special in August 2023. “It’s sinking in very slowly but I’m trying my best just to stay present, enjoy it, but this is crazy. I mean, I’ll be the first person to say this is wild. I never expected this at all, didn’t know this is what my life is turning at this moment. So yeah, crazy stuff, but I’m excited,” Joey said.

Joey, who called the experience “surreal,” told host Jesse Palmer that he felt ready to look for love again after Charity sent him home at the Final Rose Ceremony over her winner, Dotun Olubeko. “I’m more ready than I was in that moment,” Joey said. “For me, it was just, you have to take some time to get a little bit more closure. Watching Dotun and Charity’s connection was enough for me.”

Joey, who claimed that the breakup “opened up a part of me that wanted something so bad,” also told Palmer what he was looking for in a future partner. “Someone that’s just themselves that I can truthfully be a partner with. I want someone that challenges me. I want someone that I can challenge. I just want someone to do life with. I just want someone that’s going to be my person,” he said.

During The Bachelorette Season 20 “After the Final Rose” special, Joey also met his first contestant, Leia, who was in the audience for the live taping. “I think we have a lot in common, so I’m excited to kind of explore that,” Leia told Joey during the episode. In an Instagram video after the “After the Final Rose” special, Joey confirmed that was the Bachelor for the right reasons. “I’m definitely the hopeless romantic,” he said. “I want to be married. I want to have a love that lasts a lifetime. So I’m really ready to go on this journey.”

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in August 2023, Charity commended Joey for a conversation they had about interracial relationships during her Bachelorette season. “It’s huge to have had the opportunity to have that conversation, and then for it to be aired on national television — we don’t see it a lot, especially in this franchise. It was something that I was a little nervous about because I just did not know how it was going to go,” she said. “But my whole plan of being a Black woman in this lead role is having these important conversations. Also, there were conversations that I had with several other men that did not make air, and that’s OK. But it was one of my priorities to have conversations about something that’s extremely important to me and that would essentially become a very important part of their lives, too, if they ended up with me.”

In a blog post in July 2023, Reality Steve named Joey as The Bachelorette Season 20 contestant most likely to become the next Bachelor for Season 28. “I know Joey fans won’t be happy, but it is what it is,” Reality Steve wrote about Joey not receiving Charity’s Final Rose. “I’m sure he’s got a great shot for Bachelor, so I guess just hope for that. He seems to have the biggest following of Charity’s men and will be the sentimental favorite once Charity breaks up with him at final rose ceremony. So you’d think he’s got a good shot at it, but who knows.”

Read Joey’s Bachelorette 2023 biography and fun facts ahead:

“’Love’ may mean nothing in tennis, but to Joey, it’s everything! After graduation, this tennis pro quickly realized the corporate world wasn’t for him and moved to Hawaii to live his passion of teaching his favorite sport. Spending his days on the court and evenings on the beach watching the sunset with friends, Joey’s life is truly paradise. The only thing missing is someone with whom to share it. Outgoing, friendly and loyal, Joey is looking for a partner who can share in his love for adventure. Will he find a doubles partner in Charity? Here’s to hoping it’s “game, set, match” for Joey!

Fun Facts:

• Joey is a die-hard Green Bay Packers fan.

• Joey is an avid star gazer.

• Joey’s recent obsessions are golf and country music.”

Who’s The Golden Bachelor host?

Who is The Golden Bachelor host? The Golden Bachelor Season 1 host is Jesse Palmer, who was the Season 5 Bachelor in 2004 and was the youngest Bachelor in Bachelor Nation history at 24 years old. Jesse hosted his first Bachelor franchise show in 2022 with The Bachelor Season 26 with Clayton Echard. During The Bachelor Season 5 finale, Jesse gave his Final Rose to Jessica Bowlin, but didn’t propose to her. Jesse and Jessica continued to date, but ended their relationship a few weeks after the finale of their Bachelor Season aired. In June 2020, Jesse and his girlfriend, Emely Fardo, married in an intimate wedding in New York City. Jesse told Us Weekly in November 2021 that he and Emely planned to marry in Provence, France, before the current health crisis cancelled their wedding date. “We had originally planned a wedding in Provence, France, for summer 2020, which was postponed until summer of 2021 due to the pandemic, but we didn’t want to wait any longer,” he said at the time. “So, we had a small, private and intimate ceremony with close friends who lived in New York City.”

Jesse graduated from the University of Florida in Gainesville, Florida, where he played football for the Florida Gators, in 2001 with a bachelor’s of arts degree in political science and a bachelor’s of science degree in marketing. After graduation, Jesse was drafted by the National Football League to play for the New York Giants. He played with the team for four seasons from 2001 to 2005 as a quarterback. After the New York Giants, Jesse was drafted by the Canadian Football League to play for the Montreal Alouettes. He played with the team until 2005 when he was signed by the San Francisco 49ers. He then resigned with the Montreal Alouettes in 2006 before he retired from football in 2007 to pursue a broadcasting career. Since his broadcasting career started, Jesse has worked with networks like Fox, NFL Network, ESPN, ABC and SEC Network. He’s also guest starred on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and made guest appearances on shows like Recipe to Riches and Good Morning America, and hosted the Food Network’s Spring Baking Championship and Holiday Baking Championship.

Jesse was announced as The Bachelor Season 26 host in September 2021. “For more than 20 years, The Bachelor has brought the world dozens of unforgettable love stories, including at one time, my own,” he said at the time. “Falling in love is one of life’s greatest gifts, and I am humbled by the opportunity to return to the show as host this Season to offer the newest Bachelor advice gained from firsthand experience and I am grateful to play a small part in his journey.” The announcement came after Chris Harrison, the former host of Bachelor Nation, confirmed in June 2021 that he had retired as the franchise’s host after 19 years. “I’ve had a truly incredible run as host of The Bachelor franchise and now I’m excited to start a new chapter,” he wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “I’m so grateful to Bachelor Nation for all of the memories we’ve made together. While my two-decade journey is wrapping up, the friendships I’ve made will last a lifetime.”

Deadline reported at the time that Chris received a mid-range, eight-figure settlement as part of exit plan with ABC, the network that airs the Bachelor franchise, and Warner Bros. Television, the company that produces the Bachelor shows. The magazine also reported that Harrison’s settlement included a nondisclosure agreement. Chris’ decision to retire as Bachelor Nation’s host came after he was slammed for his response to Season 25 Bachelor contestant Rachael Kirkconnell’s racism scandal in February 2021. Rachael, the winner of Matt James’ season, faced backlash at the time when photos resurfaced of her at an Old South Antebellum-themed party at Georgia College in 2018. Before the pictures went viral, Rachael was already under controversy after her former high school classmate accused her on TikTok of bullying her and other students for dating Black men. Other TikTok users then exposed Rachael for liking social media photos of her friends in culturally insensitive costumes and with Confederate flags.

Chris came under controversy after he was interviewed about the scandal by Season 13 Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay on Extra. During the interview, Chris asked fans to give Rachael “grace” and explained that he didn’t find the Antebellum party photos offensive because they just looked like pictures a college student takes at a party. Harrison also questioned whether the photos would be considered racially insensitive in 2018 when they were taken. After the interview, many fans slammed Harrison and accused him of excusing Rachael’s behavior.

ABC confirmed in March 2021 that Chris wouldn’t host Season 17 of The Bachelorette and would be replaced by Tayshia and Kaitlyn. “Chris Harrison will not be hosting the next season of The Bachelorette,” ABC said in a statement at the time. “We support Chris in the work that he is committed to doing. In his absence, former Bachelorettes Tayshia Adams and Kaitlyn Bristowe will support the new Bachelorette through next season. As we continue the dialogue around achieving greater equity and inclusion within The Bachelor franchise, we are dedicated to improving the BIPOC representation of our crew, including among the executive producer ranks. These are important steps in effecting fundamental change so that our franchise is a celebration of love that is reflective of our world.” He officially retired as the Bachelor Nation’s host in June 2021.

The Golden Bachelor airs on Thursdays at 8 p.m. on ABC. Here’s how to watch it for free.

Bachelor Nation by Amy Kaufman

To get more of an inside scoop, check out Los Angeles Times writer Amy Kaufman’s book, Bachelor Nation: Inside the World of America’s Favorite Guilty Pleasure, for a deep dive into the Bachelor franchise. The book uncovers the secrets of Bachelor Nation, from how much the Bachelor and the Bachelorette are paid to the rules contestants have to follow, that producers don’t want fans to know. It’s a must-read for any Bachelor Nation member.