The first season of The Golden Bachelorette will star Montgomery County’s very own Joan Vassos. The show will premiere on Wednesday, September 18th at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC, and streams on Hulu the following day.
The initial show, The Golden Bachelor, featured bachelor Gerry searching for love. It seemed to happen quickly when Joan Vassos stole his heart after winning an early episode’s talent show with a touching poem, and a one-on-one date with Gerry. Vassos’ time was cut short when she made the decision to return home and be with her daughter, who was having a tough time following a difficult pregnancy.
Joan, a 61-year-old from Rockville, MD, grew up in Olney, MD with her mother, a nurse, and her father, an electrical engineer who worked for NASA, according to a recent report by the New York Times.
For nearly three years, Joan has been working in alumni relations and fundraising at a private school in Bethesda, MD. Before that, she ran her own business as an interior designer. According to her bio on ABC, Joan is proud of starting a new career at this stage of her life and commends herself for her resilience in navigating unexpected life changes.
She graduated from the University of Maryland in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. Joan met her husband, John, at a bar in Ocean City, MD, the summer before her junior year of college. She described herself as a “wallflower” and a “math nerd,” while John was the outgoing life of the party. The two were married in 1988, when she was 25. John took over his family’s office equipment business, while Joan worked as a coder for AT&T.
According to Joan’s ABC bio, after 32 years of marriage, she lost John to pancreatic cancer three years ago. She recalled that in February 2018, John was too unwell to travel to Wisconsin for one of Luke’s college lacrosse games. After seeking medical care, a scan revealed a mass on his pancreas, and on Valentine’s Day 2018, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
Joan has four children: Allison, Nicholas, Erica, and Luke. She describes herself as “a loving mother and a hard worker,” happiest when spending time with her family at the beach. Her devotion to her children is clear, especially since she chose her daughter’s well-being over her own pursuit of love on “The Golden Bachelor.”
Now, Joan is ready to find someone “with whom to enjoy life,” according to her Golden Bachelor bio. She’s looking for “a family man with whom to blend her life.” In her free time, she enjoys listening to Elton John, visiting historical museums, and cooking — hobbies she hopes to share with a future partner. And if they happen to appreciate a big, juicy burger, that’s even better, as it’s Joan’s favorite food!