8 Signs Joan Vassos Made The Right Decision Giving Her Final Rose To Chock Chapple (He’s Not The Villain He’s Made Out To Be)

The Golden Bachelorette‘s Joan Vassos made the right decision when she gave her final rose to Chock Chapple, and there are many good reasons that he’s not the villain he’s made out to be. It’s a love story for the ages, and it started when 61-year-old Joan Vassos applied to be a contestant on The Golden Bachelor. Excitement was high when ABC announced the production of a new Bachelor Nation show that focused on the love stories of senior citizens.

Joan, a private school administrator, applied to be on the show, and she was chosen to be one of the 22 single women who’d compete for 72-year-old Gerry Turner’s heart. Early in the season, Joan had a family emergency and had to leave the show early, dashing any hopes of a relationship with Gerry. Just as it looked like Joan’s Bachelor journey was over, she was cast as the spin-off’s first female lead.

The Golden Bachelorette season 1 premiered with Joan standing outside the iconic Bachelor mansion greeting a fleet of limousines carrying her 24 single Golden men. There were several great men in the cast, including 58-year-old Mark Anderson and 66-year-old Guy Gansert, but it was 60-year-old Chock who would ultimately win Joan’s heart. During the season finale, Joan gave Chock her final rose, and he gave her a diamond ring. The couple got engaged during the final rose ceremony and started their lives together. Overall, giving Chock her final rose was a great move on Joan’s part.

8 Joan & Chock Are Moving To NYC

A Unique Arrangement

Joan and Chock got engaged at the end of The Golden Bachelorette season 1, and they rode off into the sunset to live happily ever after. The day after getting engaged, they were interviewed by People, and they talked about their unique living arrangements. “We’re going to be going back and forth between Kansas to Maryland and to New York,” Chock said. “We’ll have a full-time place in New York and whenever we get the opportunity, we’re going to be there.”

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Before appearing on The Golden Bachelor and The Golden Bachelorette, Joan lived in Maryland, and Chock lived in Kansas, and they intended to share each other’s states for a while. Joan and Chock won’t live together, and will instead go back and forth. They’ve already started looking for a place in New York for them to buy together. Since Joan and Chock don’t know each other well, it’s too soon to move in together full-time. Taking it slow proves how much Joan and Chock care about each other.

7 Chock Was The Most In Love With Her From The Cast

Some Men Didn’t Care About Her At All

Joan dated plenty of men during The Golden Bachelorette season 1, and she hit it off with several of them, but no one fell in love with her as fully as Chock. Some of the other men liked Joan but let her down. One of the cruelest cuts was delivered by 69-year-old Pascal Igbui. The charming French salon owner made it to Joan’s final three men, and she even met his friends and family.

Things were going great until their overnight date. During a symbolic bonding ritual, Pascal panicked. The exercise made him question his feelings for Joan. In a dramatic scene posted to YouTube by Bachelor Nation, Pascal told her that he saw her as more of a friend than a lover, and then he eliminated himself from The Golden Bachelorette and went home.

6 Joan Is Smiling From Ear To Ear In Every Picture She’s In

Chock Brought Her Back To Life

The last few years have been very difficult for Joan. Long before being cast as The Golden Bachelorette, Joan was married to John Vassos. He was the love of her life, and they had four children together, who were now all grown with their own children. Joan and John were married for 32 happy years before John passed away in 2021. Joan had never seen herself having to reenter the dating scene during her golden years, but with her children out of the house, she found herself all alone.

Joan decided to be a contestant on Gerry’s season of The Golden Bachelor, but that didn’t work out for her either. When Chock came along, Joan was still struggling with the loss of her late husband and the guilt that came along with trying to replace him. Joan hasn’t stopped smiling from the moment she met Chock, and it’s difficult to even find a picture of her where she isn’t grinning from ear to ear.

5 Chock Understands Joan

He Lost A Great Love Too

Similar to Joan, Chock knows what it’s like to lose someone you love deeply. After divorcing Heather Chapple, his wife of 12 years and mother of his two children, Chock met Katherine Elizabeth White Goree. They were engaged for nine years before Heather died in 2022. During Joan and Chock’s first solo date during an early episode of The Golden Bachelorette season 1, he tells her all about losing Heather, and Joan tells him about losing John.

Chock is still close to his late fiancée’s family. In fact, when Joan went to Kansas to meet Chock’s friends and family, Katherine’s father was still close to Chock and the Chapple family. When Chock met some of Joan’s adult children, he told them he didn’t want to replace their father. He understands Joan and her loss, because he, too, lost a great love.

4 Chock Made It Clear He Was All About Joan

He Was Basically Obsessed With Her

Joan and Chock had instant chemistry, and he even got her first solo date, a dream date to Disneyland. During the date, they met Disney characters, went on some rides, and shared a romantic kiss during the famous Magic Kingdom fireworks display. Their next date wasn’t as magical. During an episode of The Golden Bachelorette season 1, Joan took several of the men on a group date to a bowling alley, including Chock. Most of the men seemed to have a great time, but it was clear Chock didn’t like having to share Joan with the other men.

Chock just wanted to be with Joan, he didn’t care about the other men. He kept sitting down right next to Joan and putting an arm around her. It bothered the other men, but Chock couldn’t seem to stop himself. As for Joan, she didn’t ask Chock to back off, and she seemed to like his possessive behavior. It seemed to make her feel special and wanted. Chock may remind Joan of her late husband, but possessiveness is a red flag Joan shouldn’t look past.

3 Chock Is Fine Waiting To Marry Joan

Love Is Patient

When Joan accepted Chock’s proposal during The Golden Bachelorette season 1, it was unexpected because she had indicated she had no intention of getting married at the end of her season. Before the start of filming, Joan was interviewed by CNN, where she said she wouldn’t be rushing into marriage. She explained that she felt people needed more time to get to know each other before entering into a serious commitment.

The Golden Bachelorette season 1 ended with Joan enthusiastically accepting Chock’s proposal as he slipped the ring onto her finger. The fact that Chock is willing to wait for Joan says a lot about him, and it’s clear he loves her very much. They say that love is patience, and Chock loves Joan enough to wait for her to be ready to walk down the aisle.

2 Chock Came Back

He Had His Own Family Emergency

While Chock was at The Bachelor mansion filming The Golden Bachelorette season 1, his mother passed away. She had been ill for a while, so it wasn’t a complete surprise, but Chock hadn’t expected her to pass away as he was filming the show. Knowing his family needed him, Chock tearfully kissed Joan goodbye and headed back to Kansas.

The moment was reminiscent of when Joan had to leave Gerry’s season of The Golden Bachelor. Like Joan, Chock put his family first, which was something else the two had in common. To Joan’s surprise, Chock came back by the end of that episode. He couldn’t give up on the chance to be with Joan, and his mother would have wanted him to continue to look for love.

1 Joan & Chock Get Along With Each Other’s Families

It’s A Family Affair

Since going public with their relationship, The Golden Bachelorette‘s Joan and Chock are eager to start enjoying their lives together, which will include blending their families. While Joan has four adult children, as well as their spouses and their children, Chock himself has two college-aged children. Since their families are older, they don’t have to live together, but it would be better if everyone got along.

Taking their families to Disneyland has symbolic significance for Joan and Chock. That was the first time the couple connected, talking about their lives. Joan and Chock want to revisit Disneyland and share the love with their families. When Chock met Joan’s children, he put them at ease, so they liked Chock. Joan met Chock’s college-age children during hometown dates, which also went well. The fact that they get along with each other’s children is a good sign The Golden Bachelorette couple will live happily ever after.

Sources: People, Bachelor Nation/YouTube, CNN

The Golden Bachelorette: This reality series offers one woman in her later years the opportunity to find love, as a group of seasoned men compete for her affection. Participants bring diverse romantic histories, seeking a meaningful connection and a chance to build a promising future together.

Cast

Joan Vassos , Jesse Palmer , Gary Levingston , Pascal Ibgui , Jonathan Rone , Charles Chock Chapple , Charles Ling , Keith Gordon , Guy Gansert , Jordan Heller , Mark Anderson , Daniel Roemer , Gil Ramirez , Charles King , Kim Buike , Gregg Lassen , Michael Stevens

Release Date

September 18, 2024

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Hulu

Character(s)

The Golden Bachelorette

Showrunner

Bennett Graebner

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