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The Golden Bachelor\u2019s<\/em> Gerry Turner<\/strong> <\/a>is ready to fall in love again \u2014 but keeps late wife Toni Turner close to his heart.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI married my high school sweetheart, Toni, in 1972. We had 43 wonderful years together<\/a>. We had two daughters and I now have two wonderful granddaughters<\/a>. We had a real typical but full life. Full of love, full of love, full of activity,\u201d Gerry, 71, said in a Monday, August 14, teaser that aired during The Bachelorette: Men Tell All<\/em> special. \u201cAs years went on, I retired and we had a plan. We had an idea of what our dream house was going to be, so when Toni retired the end of May in 2017, we bought that dream house.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gerry shared the couple closed on their home just one month later \u2014 but things went awry when Toni became increasingly ill over the following weeks.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe went to the emergency room and she had a bacterial infection that infected her kidneys and infested her liver,\u201d he explained. \u201cAnd so I took my wife to the emergency room on July 7 and she passed away on July 15. Now every time I look at [the lake outside my house] I go, \u2018This is her dream. This is what she deserves. Why am I standing here alone?\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n This spring marked six years since Toni passed away. While no one could \u201dever replace\u201d his late wife, Gerry shared that the love of his family \u201cpulled me out of a dark spot\u201d and he\u2019s now ready to find love<\/a> again.<\/p>\n \u201cMy dad is just such a fun guy. He\u2019s so personable and lovable. He\u2019s so kind and he has so much to give, he just deserves to find that in somebody else,\u201d Gerry\u2019s daughter Angie said while reassuring her dad that he will find someone who makes him \u201chappy.\u201d<\/p>\n Elsewhere in the teaser, Gerry could be seen goofing around with his kids<\/a>, practicing for upcoming rose ceremonies and opening up about the details of the Bachelor<\/em><\/a> process to friends at a bar.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know that they\u2019ve even been chosen yet, but I have passed the STD and the drug test,\u201d he quipped to pals, before joking to cameras: \u201cBest case scenario is I find out Helen Mirren<\/strong><\/a> is on the market and she\u2019s really happy to be on The Golden Bachelor<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gerry admitted that his biggest fear is \u201cremembering 25 names\u201d when he first meets the contestants competing for his heart. The senior version of the long-running ABC series is set to premiere this fall and will follow Gerry as he hands out golden roses to women between the ages of 60 to 70<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n