While failing to figure out where to live may have been the main cause of Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist’s breakup, her work life also played a big role.
Weeks before announcing their split, the Golden Bachelor stars opened up about how Theresa’s job caused conflict in their relationship. “I still work, so that’s the hurdle,” Theresa, 70, shared on a March episode of the “Dear Shandy” podcast.
Theresa explained that she didn’t expect to stay on The Golden Bachelor for as long as she did, originally telling her work that she would only be gone for two weeks. “I honestly thought, ‘Oh, let me just get through the first night,’” she said. “And I stayed and I stayed and I stayed, and my employer was so good to me. And before I left, I kind of said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m not going to leave you.’”
Though Theresa noted she doesn’t plan to work until she’s 80, her career was part of why she and Gerry, 72, remained long-distance following their January nuptials. “Until we decide on a place to really live, then I can really make a big decision to say, ‘OK, we’re going to live in this place or that place,” she stated last month. “And originally, it was South Carolina. We’re still not sure if that’s what it is.”
Gerry said he would “go through phases” when it came to how he felt about Theresa’s work. “I guess the difficult part is I went on to the show to find my partner, and I’ve been retired for a long time. I wanted fun [and] adventure. I wanted to go do [things],” he stated. “So that is the crux of it, right now, is when does that start? I think the living arrangement is really secondary to the freedom of being able to go and enjoy life and do.”
He continued: “That hurdle is still there, and right now, we’re dealing with it. It’s just something we’re gonna have to find a way around.”
Theresa previously opened up about her job in finance and how she taught herself about the stock market in her 40s on The Golden Bachelor. “I went to the library and read every book I could find on stocks and the markets,” she wrote via Instagram in November 2023. “I also started watching CNBC and listening to Bloomberg. In fact, I interned for a short while at CNBC. … I no longer daytrade, but I do remain in the industry with a great company, holding a position that I love, working with people I love.”
After getting engaged on The Golden Bachelor’s November 2023 finale and exchanging vows in a live wedding special on January 4, the duo announced they had parted ways earlier this month. “Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations and we’ve looked closely at our situation — our living situation — and we’ve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it’s time for us to dissolve our marriage,” Gerry shared on Good Morning America on Friday, April 12.
Us Weekly broke the news Gerry filed divorce docs that same day in his hometown of Petersburg, Indiana, citing an “irretrievable breakdown” of their relationship as the reason for their split.
Theresa spoke out about the divorce in a lengthy Instagram statement on Monday, April 15, sharing a Dr. Seuss quote that read, “Don’t cry because it’s over, smile because it happened.” Thanking fans for their “support and kindness,” Theresa called her and Gerry’s marriage “one of the most incredible experiences of my life.”
She continued: “[It was] 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. Sometimes things don’t go the way you planned and that’s okay.”
