Delco’s Susan Noles weighs in as ‘Golden Bachelor’ couple Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist announce surprise divorce

After Delco's own Susan Noles married the couple on live television, Turner and Nist announced their divorce on "Good Morning America," citing the woes of long distance.

Former "Golden Bacheor" contestant Susan Noles, of Aston, Pa., married Gerry Turner and Teresa Nist on live television on Jan. 4. The couple is getting divorced after three months of marriage — and long distance.Read moreJohn & Joseph Photography / Disney

by Beatrice Forman

Published Apr. 12, 2024, 9:24 a.m. ET

Well, that was fast.

Golden Bachelor stars Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist have announced they are getting a divorce — just three months after the couple tied the knot in an overly produced TV wedding that (of course) was officiated by a Delco woman.

Turner and Nist met on the first season of the ABC Bachelor spin-off, where 22 contestants competed to start their second act with Turner, a 72-year-old retired restauranteur from Indiana who lied about dating after the death of his first wife. Nist ultimately won Turner’s heart, beating out Susan Noles, a Kris Jenner dopplegänger and hairdresser from Aston so beloved by fans that she ended up marrying the couple when they wed on live television in early January. (We digress.)

“I know I’ve found a partner to share all of life’s experiences that are thrown at us,” Turner said in his vow’s to Nist.

Turner and Nist took to Good Morning America on Friday to announce their split.

Nist and Turner told GMA reporter Juju Chang that the decision boiled down to logistics: The two could not agree on where to live.

The couple had never actually moved in together after the wedding, TMZ reported, splitting time between Indiana and New Jersey, where Nist lives and works in compliance at a financial advisory firm. They had plans to settle down in South Carolina.

“We looked at homes in South Carolina, we considered New Jersey, and we just looked at homes after home, but we never got to the point where we made that decision,” Nist said on GMA.

“The thing that strikes me the most in our conversations, it’s been how dedicated both of us are to our families,” Turner continued. “We just feel like it’s best for the happiness of each of us to, to live apart.”

Turner and Nist also denied rumors that his less-than-honest dating history factored into their decision.

While on the Golden Bachelor, Turner claimed he had not gone on a date in 45 years, dutifully guarding his heart after his school sweetheart died in 2017. In reality, he started seriously dating a woman 14 years his junior just a month after his wife’s death, eventually moving in with her before they split in 2020.

“Gerry had already discussed that with me ... we were good with that,” Nist said.

The couple held hands the entire time they talked about their impending divorce.

“There’s no doubt in my mind, I still am in love with [Nist]. I root for her every day,” Turner said.

Both Nist and Turner said they are still open to “looking for love” — just not with each other.

“We didn’t want to pretend to anybody. I’m 72. That would be a waste of time,” said Turner.

What does Susan Noles have to say?

Admittedly, not much.

Over the course of the Golden Bachelor, Noles grew close with both Nist and Turner, who sent her home in Week 5 after realizing the two had more bestie energy than romantic chemistry. Noles offered to do Nist’s hair and makeup for the wedding — a callback to the primping she did before Nist’s first date — and went along with the former bride to help pick out her wedding dress.

“I truly believe [Nist and Turner] fell in love. They have their reasons, I’m sure,” Noles said in an Instagram video with Kathy Swarts, the cohost of the “Bachelor Happy Hour: Golden Hour” podcast. “We wish them all the best.”