Opening up.

Bachelor Nation fans are getting to know Gerri as she looks for love with Mel Owens on Season 2 of “The Golden Bachelor.” 

While on the show, Gerri opened up about raising her kids as a single mother after losing her husband when they were younger. 

And now, the Golden Bachelor Nation star is sharing more about her journey with grief and how her family reacted to her going on “The Golden Bachelor.” 

On a new episode of the “Bachelor Happy Hour: Golden Hour” podcast, Gerri revealed that she not only lost her husband but she also lost one of her sons. 

Reflecting on that time in her life and trying to move forward while grieving, she shared, “I mean 47 years old, you know he’s here today, gone tomorrow. Like, what am I doing with my life? We’re supposed to retire, we’re supposed to talk about what our children are supposed to do for college. What am I supposed to do with these children? And I’m saying, I never said, ‘Why me?’ Never said that. Because my philosophy was, ‘Why not me?’

“Because I had recently, not recently, like maybe 14 years prior to that, I had lost my son at 14 years old. So I lost a son as well. So I was like, ‘Okay, I’ve gotta get up and do this.’ And I did, but dating was not on my radar because [my kids] needed me. I was too busy.”

Gerri continued and discussed what going on “The Golden Bachelor” meant to her. 

She said, “It’s been a blessing and a gift, but it’s so nice to talk about it and talk about it to the point that I’ve done what I needed to do, I’ve given them the foundation, and now I can be — I don’t want to use the word selfish — but now I can be selfish and do something for Gerri.” 

Gerri also shared her family’s reaction to her going on the show and what they said to her before she left.

“They were so elated, they were so happy,” she revealed. “They were like, ‘Mom, you have given us so much, it is your time.’ You know it was really symbolic, my son David said to me one day, I’ll never forget. He said, ‘Mom, you never laugh. Why don’t you laugh?’ I was like, ‘Wow.’ And then when I was getting ready to go on the show, I was laughing!”

Hear the rest of Gerri’s conversation in the full episode of “Bachelor Happy Hour: Golden Hour” below!