Joan Vassos Has Been Named as the First Golden Bachelorette — Get to Know Some of Her Kids

It's often been said that the love lives of senior citizens are more exciting than other folks realize. Now, Bachelor Nation is getting a taste of what it's like with The Golden Bachelor. Having premiered in 2023, the first season of this Bachelor spinoff starred 72-year-old Gerry Turner as he sought to find love among several older women, affording older folks the same kind of rosy melodrama that has graced other Bachelor hopefuls for decades.

And just as the original Bachelor series eventually gave rise to The Bachelorette, The Golden Bachelor is already getting its counterpart for the ladies. The Golden Bachelorette is currently set to be released for ABC's fall lineup. On May 14, 2024, it was announced that Joan Vassos would be the star of the spinoff of a spinoff. She previously appeared as a contestant on The Golden Bachelor, but left in order to focus on her family. This includes her many kids. Let's get to know them.

Bachelor Nation will have already gotten to know Joan through her brief time on Golden Bachelor. According to her ABC biography, Joan was previously married for 32 years before her husband tragically passed away due to pancreatic cancer. However, she thrives in her eclectic career. According to her LinkedIn profile, she currently works in alumni relations for Landon School in Bethesda, Md., and is self-employed as an interior designer.

Of course, she's already well known for her family, having given up an opportunity for love on The Golden Bachelorette to be there for them. She is the mother of four adult children named Nicholas, Erica, Luke, and Allison. She explained on the show, "It's a privilege to be a mom to four amazing kids."

Furthermore, Joan is also a proud grandmother to two children.

Family always comes first for Joan and this rings especially true in her role as a grandma. She has a young grandson and welcomed a new bundle of joy as recently as 2023. According to a report by Belmont Filmhouse, Joan's daughter Erica is married and has a child of her own who was born in July 2023. Joan has proven to be an especially caring mother and loving grandmother long before Bachelor Nation gets to watch her find love at 61.

By now, fans already know that Joan puts family above all else. In The Golden Bachelor, she was hoping that Gerry could prove to be a family man to accommodate her priorities. She will no doubt adhere to this search criteria as she begins sifting through her own list of potential lovers.

The Golden Bachelorette is expected to premiere in fall 2024 on ABC.