(New York Post) They have to battle the odds to stick together.
On “Married at First Sight,” which airs its 16th season on Jan. 4, singles wed complete strangers — and out of the 59 couples from the show’s 15 seasons, just 15 are still together.
But when the Lifetime series was searching for its first batch of contestants in 2015 in the Big Apple, the bigger challenge was simply keeping the singles at the casting call.
Out of the 59 couples from “Married at First Sight’s” 15 seasons, just 15 are still together.A+E Networks
“I was in a room with maybe 50 other men, and as soon as they said, ‘The first time you’re gonna see this person will be at the end of the altar,’ half the room got up and left,” recalled Howell, N.J. native Doug Hehner.
The stay-at-home dad tied the knot with Jamie Otis, a nurse from Dryden, N.Y., whom he called “the love of my life.” They are still married and now have two children.
Hehner, now 40, had just gotten out of a relationship and moved back in with his parents before he decided to get married sight unseen.
“I was in a room with maybe 50 other men, and as soon as they said, ‘The first time you’re gonna see this person will be at the end of the altar,’ half the room got up and left,” recalled Doug Hehner (right).A+E Networks
But his new bride exceeded his expectations.
“She was more stunning than I could have ever imagined,” he gushed.
It wasn’t love at first sight for her, however, but Hehner stayed patient.
The stay-at-home dad tied the knot with Jamie Otis, a nurse from Dryden, N.Y., whom he called “the love of my life.”
“I appreciated her honesty. I never took it as a dig,” he said. On their honeymoon flight, he noticed her feelings changing, and they shared their first kiss soon after.
Besides his initial attraction, Hehner found she fulfilled a lot of qualities he had on his checklist for a future partner.
“Someone that valued family, was adventurous, wanted children, really ambitious, strong, independent, and little things like the way that you sleep,” he said. “I like spooning, both big and little spoon. Turns out Jamie does, too.”
It wasn’t love at first sight for Otis, however, but Hehner stayed patient throughout the years.Photo by Elizabeth Lippman
Besides his initial attraction, Hehner found Otis fulfilled a lot of qualities he had on his checklist for a future partner.FYI Copyright 2015
Hehner explained that Otis’ night shift at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital made them closer: “It gave us time to realize that we missed each other.”
Another contestant that season was Cortney Hendrix, now 34, a North Carolina native who married Brooklyn EMT, Jason Carrion. The pair fell in love but split five years later.
Hendrix was 25 when she moved to the Upper East Side in 2011 to attend makeup school and found Tinder a tough way to date.
She was pleased with who she met at the altar.
Another contestant that season was Cortney Hendrix, a North Carolina native who married Brooklyn EMT Jason Carrion.
Hendrix and Carrion split five years after getting married.Paul Martinka
