New Family Ties: Meredith Baxter Marries Nancy Locke

Meredith Baxter and longtime partner Nancy Locke are now legally married, having exchanged vows Sunday afternoon in Los Angeles, People reports.

It’s the fourth marriage but the first to a woman for Baxter, who came out as lesbian in 2009. The actress is best known for playing Elyse Keaton, the mother on popular 1980s sitcom Family Ties. Locke is a building contractor. The two women have been a couple for seven years.

They wrote their own vows for what People describes as “an intimate ceremony,” attended by close friends and family members, including Baxter’s five children. The couple “even took lessons to prepare for their first dance as a married couple,” People reports.

“Now I understand why marriage caught on!” Baxter told the magazine.