Fan-Favorite ‘Golden Bachelor’ Contestant Ellen Calls Elimination “One Of The Most Emotional And Difficult Times Of My Life”

Since The Golden Bachelor welcomed 22 spritely seniors to the Bachelor Mansion on Night 1, Bachelor Nation has fallen in love with several delightful 60 and 70-year-old contestants. But as host Jesse Palmer noted during the first ever Golden Bachelor “Women Tell All” special, “there was one woman who had everybody’s heart the moment she stepped out of the limo.” Retired teacher and current pickleball co-captain Ellen Goltzer, of course!

The fan-favorite contestant from Delray Beach, Florida was unfortunately eliminated ahead of Hometown Dates, but Ellen returned to screens with 12 fellow contestants to chat about her painful breakup with Gerry Turner, her late best friend Roberta, her newfound hope in finding love, and more.

After host Jesse Palmer welcomed Ellen to the stage to watch a look back at her Golden Bachelor journey, the contestant reflected on her unexpected elimination. When asked to describe her goodbye with Gerry, Ellen described it as “probably one of the most emotional and difficult times of my life, where I was face-to-face with true unhappiness and disappointment.”

“I just saw an amazing life with him. He was attentive, and caring, and loving, and funny. The way he treated me — he truly made me feel like a princess,” she said. “From what I got out of the show the most is gratitude for Gerry. Getting me to know that I am worthy…I can enjoy my life and live it to the utmost and find happiness. I’ll tell you the truth, I can’t wait to get started.”

The studio audience cheered Ellen on and Jesse said, “There’s a very lucky man out there waiting.” (Ellen for Golden Bachelorette? She’s got Decider’s stamp of approval!)

After discussing Ellen’s late BFF Roberta (who unfortunately passed away before the season premiered) Jesse brought Gerry out on stage to reunite with his 13 ex girlfriends. Ellen got a chance to speak to him for the first time since leaving the mansion, and the two gained some much-needed closure. 

“First and foremost I’d like to thank you for making me feel like a princess. Also thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for giving me ability, the confidence, and the self esteem to move on and find love,” Ellen told Gerry. “Thank you for being the person that you are.”

Gerry took a moment to thank Ellen as well. “You’re a very special person yourself. I know you wear your heart on your sleeve, the smile is huge and charming, and I think you represent the thinking of all the women that are sitting with you,” he said. “That through our journey and our experience we’ve become more hopeful, we’ve become more optimistic, we’ve realized that at our age we’re not invisible, that we have meaning, and that we have many things to offer.”

“It’s like, we made history together,” Gerry said. “We have so much to be proud of.”

He’s got that right! Wondering how Gerry’s historic journey to find love ends? New episodes of The Golden Bachelor premiere Thursdays at 8:00 p.m. ET on ABC, with next-day streaming on Hulu.