Heavy/ABC Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist.
Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist are set to tie the knot on TV.
On January 4, 2024, “The Golden Bachelor” star and his short-term fiancée will exchange vows in the first televised “Bachelor” wedding to take place in a decade.
In 2014, Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici were the last Bachelor Nation pair to score a TV wedding funded by ABC. This time around, the ceremony will look very different as it includes tributes to the senior citizen bride and groom’s late spouses.
Here’s what you need to know:
Gerry Turner & Theresa Nist Have Plans to Honor Their Late Spouses at Their Wedding
Turner, 72, and Nist, 70, are wasting no time in tying the knot. Their whirlwind wedding was thrown into high gear following their TV engagement that aired on ABC in November 2023.
“We’re old!” Turner shared on ‘The Bachelor Happy Hour” podcast. “Think about it this way: You can wait a year in your 20s because that might be three percent of your remaining life. When you’re in your 70s, a year could be 10 or 20 percent of the time you have left. We didn’t want to put off what we really felt was right. “
Both Nist and Turner were previously married for over 40 years. Turner’s wife Toni died in 2017 following a short illness from a bacterial infection, while Nist lost her husband Billy to kidney failure after 42 years of marriage.
The new couple told Parade they will pay tribute to their late spouses during their wedding. “We are definitely going to celebrate their memories in some way. We haven’t decided exactly how, but they’ll be part of the ceremony,” Turner said.
Nist elaborated while speaking to E! News. “We will definitely mention them during the wedding,” she told the outlet. “I know that I picked out a song that Billy loved, and so maybe we’ll pick out a song for Toni. We have yet to write our vows, but I plan on incorporating that into my vows. … And we’ll be thinking about them the entire day.”
Gerry & Theresa’s Wedding Ceremony Will Include All of Their Family Members
Turner and Nist each have two kids, as well as multiple grandchildren. The couple confirmed that their four kids – Nist is mom to a son, Tommy, and a daughter, Jenny, while Turner is the father of daughters Angie and Jenny— and all of their grandkids will be involved in their nuptials in some way.
“This is going to be a family event,” Turner told Fox News Digital. “My son-in-law will be best man. We are going to have as many of the family members involved as we possibly can.”
Nist chimed in to confirm that “every family member” will be involved. The bride said her son Tommy will walk her down the aisle. “That’s really going to be such a really special moment for me,” Nist told Fox. “I’m so close with both my children. But of course, Tommy, I mean, you know, he’s my heart and so there was no other choice for me. It was such an easy decision that it would always be Tommy.”
Nist confirmed that her future stepdaughters, Angie and Jenny, will both be bridesmaids. Her youngest grandson Henry will serve as the ring bearer, she told E! News.
No “Golden Bachelorette” castoffs will be in the wedding party, the groom confirmed. “We’re sort of reserving those important spots for family,” Turner told Parade.
One thing the couple won’t spill on is the identity of the officiant for their garden-themed ceremony. Former “Bachelor” host Chris Harrison famously officiated several past Bachelor Nation weddings, but Turner and Nist would not confirm if current franchise host Jesse Palmer will officiate theirs. The couple also remained mum on co-star Susan Noles’ offer to officiate their nuptials. Instead, “The Golden Bachelor” star teased to Parade that the officiant will be a “surprise” for fans.
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