Gerry Turner‘s first one-on-one date as the Golden Bachelor brought all the feels.
The 72-year-old lead invited Theresa Nist for chocolate milkshakes during the Thursday, October 5, episode of the ABC series and the twosome ended up bonding over their late spouses.
“I married my high school sweetheart, Billy. We were together since freshman year, I was 14, he was 16. We were married 42 years,” Theresa recalled. “He passed away. What happened ultimately was his kidneys were not good … one day when I was at work, he all of a sudden took a turn for the worse, and I ran home and I watched him take his last breath.”
Gerry had previously informed the audience that his wife of 43 years, Toni, died suddenly in 2017 after a bacterial infection spread to her kidneys and liver.
“Losing a spouse is the worst thing,” he told Theresa. “I know what the feeling is like.”
“Neither one of us thought this was going to happen,” Theresa added. “We thought we were gonna live with our spouses for the rest of our lives.“
The conversation ended on an uplifting note, with Gerry and Theresa making it clear they haven’t given up on love via a dance party to Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing.”
The Golden Bachelor airs on ABC Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET. For a recap of week 2, watch the video above.
