‘Golden Bachelor’ star Theresa on split from Gerry: ‘I truly thought it was going to last forever’

Theresa Nist understands that some people may be “confused and angry” about her and “The Golden Bachelor” star Gerry Turner’s divorce.

The pair, who met on ABC's “The Golden Bachelor,” announced April 12 they are divorcing, three months after their televised wedding.

In an Instagram post on April 15, Nist, 70, shared the Dr. Seuss quote, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.”

She then thanked people for their love and support, before explaining in a lengthy message what had transpired between her and Turner.

“To everyone who has expressed love, support and kindness to me I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are all such wonderful human beings. It means the world to me that you took the time to reach out to me, whether in person, on the phone, by text or by direct message. You are all so kind to do so,” she began. “For everyone else who is confused and angry and who does not understand, please try to find it in your heart to understand and to try a little kindness. Not just for me but for the world and for everyone you encounter.”

Nist called being on the reality show “one of the most incredible experiences of my life, something I never expected to happen at this point in my life and I truly thought it was going to last forever. It turns out, even at the age of 70, you don’t know everything.”

She wrote that sometimes things don’t go the way you planned and that’s OK. She wrote that she takes “so many positives away from this experience,” most importantly the incredible friends she now has in her life.

“Angie and Jenny, Payton and Charlee, the producers, the production crew and so many of you,” she added.

Nist concluded by writing that she hopes people stay open to all the “experiences, opportunities, and love that may come your way. Keep smiling, keep laughing… I will. I love you all.”

Turner, 72, began his journey as the first-ever "Golden Bachelor" when the show premiered in September 2023. Early on in the season, he connected with Nist, who hails from New Jersey. Both of them married their high school sweethearts, who both died after illnesses.

After accepting his final rose, Nist and Turner got married in a televised wedding special on Jan. 4.

On April 12, they shocked fans when they announced in an interview that they would be divorcing after three months of marriage.

“Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations, and we’ve looked closely at our situation, our living situation, so forth and — and we’ve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it’s probably time for us to — dissolve our marriage,” Turner said in the interview with ABC News.

Nist said, “We have received so much love and support from so many people who watched ‘The Golden Bachelor,’ and I don’t think we can tell you how many people told us that it gave them so much hope. We want none of that to change for anybody.”

That same day, Turner submitted a petition for “dissolution of marriage” to Pike Circuit Court, Indiana court records showed.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com