Gerry Turner wasn’t the primary love of Theresa Nist’s lifestyles.
Theresa misplaced her first husband, William “Billy” Nist, just about a decade sooner than showing on The Golden Bachelor in September 2023. “It’s been almost nine years since my husband passed away, and I want to be in love again,” she stated in her episode 1 intro bundle.
All the way through the display’s debut season, Theresa and Gerry bonded over their shared enjoy of dropping a partner. Gerry’s spouse, Toni Turner, passed on to the great beyond in 2017 from a bacterial an infection.
“Neither one of us thought this was gonna happen,” Theresa said right through their one-on-one date right through episode 2. “We thought we were gonna live with our spouses for the rest of our lives.”
The couple’s love endured to blossom, with Gerry in the end popping the query right through the season 1 finale in November 2023. “I can’t even believe that this is happening,” Theresa exclaimed in a post-proposal confessional. “And we know that Toni and Billy would absolutely be so happy for us right now.”
Gerry and Theresa will tie the knot on ABC’s The Golden Marriage ceremony particular, which airs Thursday, January 4, at 8 p.m. ET. Stay scrolling to peer Theresa’s maximum heartfelt quote about Billy:
Theresa and Billy’s Love Tale
Theresa unfolded about her and Billy’s courting right through her first one-on-one date with Gerry, revealing that she and her “high school sweetheart” met when she was once 14 and he was once 16.
“We were married 42 years and he passed away,” she shared right through the October 2023 episode. “What happened, ultimately, was that his kidneys were not good, and Billy always had hope of a kidney transplant. But one day, when I was at work, he all of a sudden takes a turn for the worse. And I ran home, and I watched him take his last breath.”
A Go back and forth Down Reminiscence Lane
On Veterans Day in November 2023, Theresa shared a reminiscence from the early days of her courting with Billy by means of Instagram. “Billy and I met when I was 14 and he was 16. We got married at 18 and 20. He was stationed in Berlin during the Vietnam war,” she wrote along throwback pics in their time in Germany. “I took my first plane ride and we lived there for almost a year. Living in Berlin, I realize now and at the time, was a once in [a] lifetime experience.”
The vacation additionally marked the 9th anniversary of Billy’s loss of life. “Remembering my late husband and remembering all the veterans who served our country so that we could be free, not to do whatever we please, but to do the right thing,” she concluded her submit, which additionally featured footage from their marriage ceremony.
Theresa’s Seventies marriage ceremony robe featured lengthy sleeves and a top neckline. She finished the glance with a white floral bouquet, a lace floral headpiece and a brief veil. Billy complemented his spouse’s ensemble with a white tux jacket, a black bow tie and black get dressed pants.
New Beginnings
Whilst ready to peer whether or not Gerry would pop the query right through the November 2023 Golden Bachelor finale, Theresa mirrored again on her romance with Billy. “The first few years after Billy passed away, I thought, ‘That’s it. I’ll never love a man again.’ But now, I found love with Gerry,” she stated in a confessional. “When I got married to Billy, when I was 18 years old, he didn’t get down on one knee with an engagement ring, so it would be something I’ve never had happen in my life before. It would be overwhelming.”
Remembering Their Beloved Ones
Forward of The Golden Marriage ceremony particular, Theresa published that she and Gerry deliberate to “definitely mention” their overdue spouses right through the rite. “I know that I picked out a song that Billy loved, and so maybe we’ll pick out a song for Toni,” she advised E! Information in a January 2024 interview. “We have yet to write our vows, but I plan on incorporating that into my vows. So, we’ll see. And we’ll be thinking about them the entire day.”