Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner Announces He and New Fiancée Will Tie the Knot in a Live, Televised Ceremony

Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner Announces He and New Fiancée Will Tie the Knot in a Live, Televised Ceremony

During Thursday's After the Final Rose, Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist announced they're getting married in a live special on Jan. 4, 2024

<p>ABC/Craig Sjodin</p> Theresa Nist and Gerry Turner on

ABC/Craig Sjodin

Theresa Nist and Gerry Turner on 'The Golden Bachelor'

Warning: This story contains spoilers from Thursday’s finale of The Golden Bachelor.

For Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner, forever with his fiancée Theresa Nist can’t start soon enough.

The couple, who got engaged during Thursday’s Golden Bachelor finale, announced during After the Final Rose that they’ll say “I do” in front of a live audience with an ABC wedding special on Jan. 4.

"We are going to get married, 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," Gerry said. "As quickly as we can put together a wedding plan, we're getting married!"

“Save the date: Gerry and Theresa are getting married and guess what, we’re invited to the wedding because it will be live on ABC January 4,” host Jesse Palmer then said. "How 'bout that? It's so exciting!"

<p>ABC/Craig Sjodin</p>

ABC/Craig Sjodin

Related: Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner Told Fiancée in the Fantasy Suite He Planned to Propose: ‘I Was Very Confident’ (Exclusive)

The news comes after Gerry, 72, sent home finalist Leslie Fhima ahead of proposal day and popped the question to Theresa, 70. Gerry told both ladies during Fantasy Suites that he loved them, but ultimately felt he had a stronger connection with Theresa.

“I headed towards the end, I was really in conflict about several of the women,” Turner previously told PEOPLE. “As very specific events occurred, it really helped me gain clarity on what I wanted to do.”

<p>Jim Wright</p> Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist from 'The Golden Bachelor'

Jim Wright

Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist from 'The Golden Bachelor'

The retired restaurateur said “there were very specific characteristics that I was looking for” going into his season, and he quickly picked up on when a woman possessed those traits.

“I met some of the women and recognized they were beautiful and gracious and intelligent, but they weren't the right woman for me,” Gerry said. “I had to find the right person.”

Related: Golden Bachelor Gerry Turner Reflects on a Few 'Failures' Trying to Date After His Wife's Death (Exclusive)

And he did in Theresa. He proposed to the financial services professional in the presence of his two daughters and granddaughters during Thursday’s finale.

“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,” Theresa said to Gerry on proposal day.

Gerry told Theresa he loved her “1,000%” and dropped to one knee to ask her to marry him. Of course, she said yes.

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The Golden Bachelor can be streamed on Hulu.

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