Joan Vassos is getting ready to star in the first season of The Golden Bachelorette. After the last season of The Golden Bachelor was a hit, fans are excited to see how the first spinoff plays out and learn more about the inaugural Golden Bachelorette.
Like The Golden Bachelor’s Gerry Turner, Joan is also a widow. She lost her husband John Vassos in 2021 when he was only 59, and three years later she joined the ABC reality show.
As Joan Vassos prepares to look for love in the debut season of The Golden Bachelorette, get to know more about her first husband!
Joan Vassos Was Married to John for 32 Years
Joan was wed to John for 32 years when he died from pancreatic cancer on January 18, 2021. He was 59 years old. She grieved his passing for two years before auditioning for The Golden Bachelor in 2023.
Joan Vassos Paid Tribute to Him on the 3rd Anniversary of His Death
Joan honored her late husband with an Instagram post in January 2024. The photo had Joan and John posing with their children, while wearing all-white outfits on a dock. “It’s been three years,” she began the post
In the caption, the Golden Bachelorette wrote about how difficult it can be to navigate the grief that comes with losing a husband. “Some days it seems like it just happened and I can’t catch my breath, still feeling the shock of it,” she began.
“Other days it feels like he’s been gone a lifetime, those days are worse because I’m afraid the memories are fading,” she wrote. “For years I’ve tried to think of how to memorialize him, but nothing seems quite right.”
Joan continued and spoke about how she believes John would want to be remembered. “He was the husband that always made me feel safe and cherished. He was the parent that was always the fun one because that’s all he knew how to do…lucky kids because fun in his book was generally epic,” she wrote.
Joan Vassos and John Had 4 Children Together
Throughout their marriage, Joan had four children with John. They have two daughters Allison and Erica and two sons Nicholas and Luke. Additionally, the pair have three grandchildren: two grandsons and a granddaughter.
Joan prioritizes her family, and she exited The Golden Bachelor early to be there for the birth of her grandson. “My journey to find love took a detour this week as I traded the mansion for motherhood and headed home to be with my family,” she wrote on Instagram.
“Family comes first, period. Once a mother, always a mother, I’ll always choose my kids first,” she continued. “Thank you for all of your outpouring love and support, for not only me but also my daughter.”
Joan also regularly posts photos and videos with her kids and grandchildren on her Instagram. Her kids were also featured in a preview for The Golden Bachelorette.
John Encouraged Joan Vassos to Meet Someone After He Passed
Prior to joining The Golden Bachelor, Joan admitted that she was finding it difficult to will herself back into dating in an interview with CNN. “I did not want to spend my life alone, so I knew that I had to take action, but my heart wasn’t there at all,” she said.
Joan revealed that was when she saw a casting call for the reality series. “I was like, ‘The universe is talking to me,’” she said.
Joan said she believed that John “had a little hand” in helping her get to where she is now. “He told me right before he passed away, ‘You need to go out and find somebody else. You were the best wife in the world and I want you to be happy,’” she told Entertainment Tonight.
Joan also said that getting John’s blessing was important to her to move on. “He gave me this wonderful gift before he died, and he said go and do something, and so here I am,” she said.
Joan also revealed that her late husband was a big reality TV fan, and she knows that he’d be proud. “I think he’s up there going, ‘Look, that’s my wife down there. She’s doing this,’” she told the outlet.
In a preview for The Golden Bachelorette, Joan spoke with her kids about what she’s looking for in a man, and she reassured them. “I’m not here to replace Dad, I just want our family to be whole again,” she said.
What Else Has Joan Vassos Said About Her Marriage?
Joan opened up about her past, and what she’s looking for in an August 2024 interview with Katie Couric Media. “I had a wonderful life with my late husband, and I loved being married,” she said.
“I wanted to experience that feeling again but finding a match later in life seemed impossible to do organically. We live in a world of couples and the chance of meeting someone while going about your normal day is very unlikely,” she continued.