Are the Merrifields from ‘Seeking Sister Wife’ Still Together?

 

About “Seeking Sister Wife”

TLC added “Seeking Sister Wife” to its roster of programs in January 2018, since when viewers have come to love or loathe famous polygamist couples such as the Joneses, the McGees, and the Snowdens. As the title implies, these couples are actively seeking to add new sister wives to their family unit, which at first glance appears simpler than it really is.

Garrick and Dannielle Merrifield, who we’ll be focusing on today, have been one of the show’s most controversial couples to date, and have somewhat become the villains of the series. We’ll be answering the burning questions that everyone’s been asking: are the couple still together? What happened with Roberta? Did Garrick and Dannielle work through their jealousy and trust issues?

Garrick and Dannielle

Garrick and Dannielle Merrifield hail from Colorado, and share two sons named Solomon and Geremiah. The couple joined “Seeking Sister Wife” in its third season, and became polygamists after being in a happily monogamous relationship for over a decade; unsurprisingly, Garrick was the one who suggested the change – well, there’s almost no such thing as ‘brother husbands’.

Both adults appeared happy at first to practice polygamy, albeit for different reasons. As Garrick said in the season four premiere, he and Dannielle felt that God had “led” them towards polygamy, whereas Dannielle is interested in having a big family with plenty of love and babies to go around.

Although their outlook on polygamy was a positive one, the Merrifields’ experience with Roberta was anything but. Garrick and Dannielle met Roberta on an online dating site during the filming of season three. The glamorous Brazilian native and the Colorado couple got on like a house on fire, so much so that the Merrifields put their children and jobs on the backburner, and travelled to Brazil on several occasions during the courtship phase.

Trouble arose when Roberta accepted Garrick’s proposal, as she could only enter the USA with a K-1 visa, which viewers of “90 Day Fiancé” will be familiar with. A K-1 visa is necessary for the fiancés of American citizens to enter the country, but only if the couple become legally married within three months; if not, then the foreign fiancé is forced to return to their home country – permanently.

However, Garrick and Dannielle had already been legally married for years. After much persuasion, Dannielle reluctantly divorced Garrick – and rescinded all her legal rights as his spouse – so that Roberta could obtain her visa and legally marry Garrick. Although Garrick and Dannielle remained spiritually married, she found it hard to get used to the sudden shift in the dynamics of their relationship, and began having regrets about the decision she’d taken: so much so, that many were waiting for the couple to split up.

Despite the rumors, Garrick and Dannielle are still together. In fact, her Instagram handle is @wifey_merrifield and her bio on the social media platform proudly describes her as a wing woman to her husband and mother to two amazing boys. The couple brought in the new year together with a celebratory video in which they shared a romantic kiss and toasted with champagne – but Roberta was nowhere to be seen.

As it happens, Roberta pretty much ghosted the naïve Merrifields after getting her K-1 visa. In season four, the Brazilian native’s mother began having health issues, and Roberta stayed in her home country to take care of her. After over a year passed without seeing their sister wife, Garrick and Dannielle decided to look for another one – although they had no intentions of replacing Roberta.

However, Roberta was anything but pleased to hear that a third wife would be joining the family, especially before she’d had a chance to settle into her new life with the couple. It appears that Roberta wanted to get used to the US and living with the Merrifields first, and when Garrick revealed that he was courting a new woman and had even gone on dates with her, she was furious.

The situation took a turn for the worse when the Merrifields returned to Colorado and received a text message from Roberta which was addressed to Dannielle. Roberta spoke of feeling excluded, and strangely cited cultural differences as the reason for her negative attitude towards a third sister wife. It’s also possible that she felt that Garrick and Dannielle replacing her, but whatever the case, she ceased all communication with the Merrifields from then on.

Ironically, it was Dannielle’s idea to introduce a third wife to the family so that there would be more balance. When things with Roberta didn’t work out, the couple began courting Lea, a nurse and single mother residing in California. Lea had been brought up in a polygamous family, and was also in a polygamous relationship with one of her previous partners… but when Garrick and Dannielle flew to California to visit her, all parties realized that their expectations were incompatible.

During a dinner date, Lea said: “I work in the hospital for 8 to 12 hours. I don’t feel like I should have to come home and do laundry and cook.” Obviously, Garrick liked the idea of being taken care of by another wife, whereas Dannielle wanted help around the house and with her children. As Lea had no intentions of doing so, she promptly ended the courtship.

Danielle/Garrick/Roberta- Ms Danielle is getting a kick out of making Roberta jealous of Lea. It’s written all over her face! #seekingsisterwife

— Sparkle1244 (@Sparkle1244) June 23, 2022

Many viewers of “Seeking Sister Wife” are hoping that Garrick and Dannielle split up, as since they began practicing polygamy, she’s become jealous and insecure despite immersing herself into her new plural marriage as best as possible. Viewers also think that Garrick doesn’t care about Dannielle, as he remained impassive when she broke into tears after signing divorce papers, so that he could marry Roberta.

Both Garrick and Dannielle have also been accused of being controlling, as Lea said that she didn’t feel that she had any choice in the relationship, adding: “It didn’t feel as genuine as I was hoping for. It was kinda really your way or the highway.”

There has been much speculation about the Merrifields’ possible return to “Seeking Sister Wife” for a fifth season, but for now, nothing has been confirmed regarding the definitive cast members.