Who says you can’t buy love?
Marc Guss is offering a $10,000 reward to whoever can find his mother a match.
“The [amount] could have been ten-fold,” said the Upper East Sider, who posted his bid earlier this week on various local Facebook groups. “If I knew that she would meet someone and would be happy, there is no number too high.”
Almost immediately, he was inundated with hundreds of messages from people hoping to help his mom — and to applaud him. One woman even wrote: “If YOU are single send me a note!” (He’s happily married, ladies.)
Before a magic matchmaker can claim the prize, Marc explained, a “committed relationship” needs to develop between his mother, Esther, and the suitor.
“There’s no contract,” he said, calling it a good-faith agreement. “When they both say they are committed to each other and exclusive, the person will get the prize.”
Esther’s husband, George, died in 1986. After that, the Manhattan Beach widow was in a long-term relationship but her partner passed away three years ago.
Since then, Marc, the co-founder of voice-over talent agency, ACM, has been spending up to three hours a day managing his mother’s online dating profiles on sites such as Plenty of Fish and JDate. Her daughter sometimes takes her to singles events.
“The guys on those sites are in their 70s and 80s, and they write: ‘My age range is 40s to 50s,’ ” said Marc. (Esther won’t reveal her exact age, but says she is in her 70s.) “They . . . are just sitting there hoping a jackpot hits.”
He said he has also shelled out some $12,000 on professional matchmakers and glamour shots for his mom, to no avail.
Esther is looking for a Jewish man in his 70s or 80s who is “caring, respectful, fun and energetic,” according to Marc. “She’s not looking for an Upper West Side professor. She’s just looking for a down-to-earth guy who is not snooty.”
“He should have at least a car,” added Esther. Although she’ll settle for a guy with an Uber app. “If he is a gentleman, fine, you pay and we go.”
Once a prospect gets Marc’s seal of approval, Esther will decide if she wants to move forward with a date.
Her ideal first date would be coffee or lunch. “Just simple,” she said. “But he can’t come to the house the first time. Absolutely not.”
She would also love a man who enjoys long walks with her chihuahua, PeeWee.
“If he doesn’t like [dogs], go back,” she said. “Absolutely not.”
And she’s not in a rush for a ring. “They want to move in, and I’m not up to it,” she said. “But if he’s a gentleman, you never know.”
She wants a “companion” — someone to go to parties and dinners with, and to eventually take to Marc’s beach house in New Jersey.
Family means everything to Esther, who is originally from Poland and lost her parents and three siblings in the Holocaust. So she’s incredibly grateful for her son, Marc, and his generous offer.
“Are you kidding me? No one in the United States will do for a mom like my son,” she said. “I hope it works, with all my heart.”
Matchmakers can contact Marc at mgmarcw@gmail.com
