'Golden Bachelor' Star Theresa Nist Speaks Out After Gerry Turner Files For Divorce

Turner and Nist announced their split on Friday and the Golden Bachelor filed for divorce shortly after.

The Golden Bachelor's Theresa Nist is speaking out after Gerry Turner filed for divorce after three months of marriage.

On Monday, the 70-year-old Bachelor Nation star took to Instagram to thank her followers for their support. 

"To everyone who has expressed love, support and kindness to me I thank you from the bottom of my heart. You are all such wonderful human beings," she wrote. "It means the world to me that you took the time to reach out to me, whether in person, on the phone, by text or by direct message. You are all so kind to do so. For everyone else who is confused and angry and who does not understand, please try to find it in your heart to understand and to try a little kindness. Not just for me but for the world and for everyone you encounter." 

Nist's message was accompanied by a graphic that had the Dr. Seuss quote, "Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened." 

"It was one of the most incredible experiences of my life, 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," she added. "Sometimes things don't go the way you planned and that's okay. I take so many positives away from this experience, most importantly and above all the incredible friends I now have in all of these amazing, wonderful women and in Angie and Jenny, Payton and Charlee, the producers, the production crew and so many of you."

Nist ended her note with a message of hope and inspiration.

"I ask you to please stay open to all the experiences, opportunities, and love that may come your way. Keep smiling, keep laughing… I will. I love you all," she concluded. 

On Friday, Nist and Turner, 72, announced during a joint interview on Good Morning America that they would be ending their marriage.

Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist are ending their marriage after 3 months. - Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty Images

"Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations and we've looked closely at our situation, our living situation and so forth and we've kind of come to the conclusion mutually that it's probably time for us to dissolve our marriage," Turner said, sitting beside Nist and holding her hand. 

During the conversation, Turner noted that the pair's devotion to their families was one of the main factors of their split. Nist shared that she was proud to have gone on the journey and wanted it to continue to inspire others to look for love, no matter the stage of their life.

"I don't think we can tell you how many people told us that it gave them so much hope. We want none of that to change for anybody," Nist said. 

Hours after the interview, Turner officially filed for divorce from Nist in an Indiana court. 

Gerry Turner and Theresa Nist tied the knot during a televised wedding ceremony in January. - Getty Images

According to court documents obtained by Page Six, Turner cited an "irretrievable breakdown" as the reason for the split and listed April 12 as the date of separation.

Turner and Nist tied the knot during a televised ceremony that aired on Jan. 4 on ABC following the ground-breaking season of The Bachelor franchise that featured a host of silver singles looking for love with Turner. 

In December, ET exclusively spoke with the former couple as they were still a month out from their wedding, and they shared their excitement about finally being able to share their love with the world.

At the time, Nist also shared how happy she was to find love again on the inspiring journey.

She said, "I was open to the experience and the opportunity to be married again, but who would've thought? This is amazing. This is incredible."

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