New Jersey native was previously married to a Vietnam War veteran for 42 years before his death in 2014
"The Golden Bachelor" star Gerry Turner found true love again with Theresa Nist.
The 72-year-old, who was the ABC reality show's first leading "Golden Bachelor," dropped to one knee and proposed to Nist, 70, before giving her his final rose at the end of the series finale on Thursday night.
"I came to the realization that you're not the right person for me to live with," Turner told Nist after saying goodbye to finalist Leslie Fhima. "You're the person I can't live without."
"The Golden Bachelor" Gerry Turner proposed to Theresa Nist in the season finale. (John Fleenor/Disney via Getty Images)
He continued, "Theresa, I love you 1000%. I'm never going to stop believing it. Every day I choose you. Will you marry me?"
"I know how sometimes it feels like the whole world thinks love is only for the young, and quite honestly, at the age of 70, I was beginning to feel that myself," Nist said before accepting his proposal.
"I’m so madly in love with you, Gerry, and I feel that for us, life isn’t over, the best is yet to come."
Here's what to know about the woman who won Turner's heart and the couple's plans for the future.
Turner told Nist that she was the "person I can't live without" after giving her his final rose. (John Fleenor/DISNEY via Getty Images)
She hails from New Jersey
Turner and Nist are planning to move to South Carolina to start their married life. (John Fleenor/ABC via Getty Images)
Nist lives in Shrewsbury, New Jersey. In photos obtained by Fox News Digital, she was spotted running errands in her hometown on Thursday before flying to Los Angeles for the "Golden Bachelor" finale.
The reality television personality was seen returning a blue velvet chair to HomeGoods and carrying a Marshalls shopping bag. Nist wore a black jacket which she paired with blue jeans embroidered with flowers, a white knit hat and black sneakers.
After finishing her errands, Nist returned home where she was picked up by a chauffeur to head to the airport.
Nist hails from Shrewsbury, New Jersey. (MEGA )
Though her fiancé currently lives in Indiana, the couple told People magazine that distance will not be a problem in their relationship since they had decided to move together to Charleston, South Carolina.
"One of the things that I think fate played a hand in is the possibility of where we might wind up living," Turner told the outlet. "For the last couple of years, when my family gets together, I've talked about moving to South Carolina, and it's an idea I've toyed with."
Turner recalled sharing his thoughts of moving to South Carolina with Nist, who told him that her son Tommy "lives near Charleston in South Carolina."
She was spotted running errands in her hometown on Thursday (MEGA )
"And all of a sudden it's like, there's a big problem that is gone," Turner told the outlet. "The issue of compromising on where to live and how to reconcile families and all of that is, it's no longer an issue."
The pair told People that they are hoping to enjoy frequent visits from their families.
"We want to have a house that's so inviting that everyone would want to come," Nist said.
"Maybe a pool so they all want to come and have fun," she added.
PHOTOS: Theresa Nist outing in New Jersey
Nist's late husband was a Vietnam War veteran
Nist was married to her husband, William, for 42 years before he died from kidney failure. (Theresa Nist Instagram)
During the show, Nist and Turner connected over the losses of their longtime spouses. Turner's late wife of 43 years, Toni, died in 2017 following a bacterial infection. Nist was married to her husband, William, for 42 years before he died from kidney failure.
On Veterans Day, Nist shared a tribute to her late husband, who she described on the show as her "childhood sweetheart."
"Billy and I met when I was 14 and he was 16," she wrote in the caption of a series of throwback photos of the pair.
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Nist continued, "We got married at 18 and 20. He was stationed in Berlin during the Vietnam war. I took my first plane ride and we lived there for almost a year. Living in Berlin, I realize now and at the time, was a once in the lifetime experience."
"Billy passed away nine years ago today. Remembering my late husband and remembering all the veterans who served our country so that we could be free, not to do whatever we please, but to do the right thing," she concluded.
Following their engagement, Turner said he knew both of their late spouses had given their blessings for the union.
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"We know that Toni and Billy would absolutely be happy for us right now," he shared after proposing to Nist.
Turner said that he knew William and his late wife Toni would be happy for him and Nist. (John Fleenor/DISNEY via Getty Images)
Self-made day trader
Nist now works as a financial services planner after teaching herself to day trade. (Disney/John Fleenor)
Nist became a financial services professional after teaching herself to become a day trader. She is currently employed as a Senior Compliance and Operations Liaison at TFS Securities Inc in Lincroft, NJ.
In a recent Instagram post, Nist recalled her career journey and posted a series of throwback photos.
"At 46 years old, I developed a passion for the stock market," she wrote. "I went to the library and read every book I could find on stocks and the markets. I also started watching CNBC and listening to Bloomberg."
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She continued, "In fact, I interned for a short while at CNBC. I bought three stocks in solid companies that I planned on holding forever. I probably would have been better off if I had held them, collecting their dividends all these years, but trading every day was much more appealing to me (far more exciting)."
"It was like playing chess where you had to be about 10 moves ahead of your opponent," Nist added. "I started writing down what I was observing, what was actually moving the markets. I wound up writing three journals."
"They helped me tremendously in understanding what actually moved stocks. 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."
Nist is the mother of two children
The reality TV personality has two children and six grandsons. (John Fleenor/DISNEY via Getty Images)
Theresa shared son Tommy and daughter Jen with William. Tommy and his wife Amanda are parents to three sons Brandon, Brody and Braxton.
Jen and her husband Matt Woolston share sons Dempsey, Leo and Henry, who met Turner when he visited Nist's hometown.
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Turner also shared two children, daughters Angie Warner and Jenny Young, with Toni. He is grandfather to Young's daughters Payton, 21, and Charlee, 16, whom she shares with her husband Jon.
In August, Turner told Variety that Angie and Jenny gave him the idea to audition for "The Golden Bachelor."
"I was feeling kind of down on my luck and I saw the ad, and I mentioned it to my daughters. They’re big fans of the show, and they kind of got me watching the show and they said, 'Dad, you should do it,'" he recalled.
Turner told the outlet that his family was "genuinely excited and thrilled" about his journey to find love again on the show.
"My granddaughters have had guests to my house since this all started, and they pick their friends that are big fans of the show," he said.
‘Golden Wedding’
Nist and Turner will marry during a televised wedding on Jan. 4. (Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Images)
Wedding bells will ring on Jan. 4 during the "Golden Wedding," another milestone event for the franchise with the first televised live nuptials in a decade. Sean Lowe and Catherine Giudici said "I do" with cameras rolling in January 2014.
The couple's wedding plans were announced during the "After the Final Rose" special on Thursday night. "The Golden Bachelor" host Jesse Palmer revealed that the show had gifted them with a trip to their dream destination, Italy.
"We can use that as our honeymoon trip because we are going to get married," Turner said. "We're going to do it as quickly as we can because at our age, we don't have a lot of time to waste," Turner said. "As quickly as we can put together a wedding plan, we’re getting married!"
The couple's wedding plans were announced during the "After the Final Rose" special on Thursday night. (Craig Sjodin/ABC via Getty Images)
Fox News Digital's Tracy Wright contributed to this report.
Ashley Hume is an entertainment writer for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to
