Comments from Experts:     (Couple Comments are Below)

Catholic Engaged Encounter has won recognition from the National Association of Catholic Family Life Ministers (NACFLM) with the "Outstanding Organization in Family Life Ministries" award.  They state:

"This award is presented to Catholic Engaged Encounter to acknowledge the number of years that this organization has provided excellent marriage preparation.  Your members have worked tirelessly to provide training, outlines and resources for this important ministry.  Your presence in many dioceses throughout the United States is a testimony to the impact that you have had on new families.  The CARA study and evaluation of Catholic Engaged Encounter speaks of the value and importance of this ministry for the Catholic Church and other denominations as well."

"Engaged Encounter is the best marriage preparation program in communication for engaged couples of any denomination in the U.S."
Michael J. McManus, author of the book, "Marriage Savers", syndicated columnist in 100 newspapers and radio commentator.

"We believe that Engaged Encounter is an opportunity for engaged couples to truly connect with one another on important topics and issues without being distracted by daily life."
Sheri & Bob Stritof, authors of "The Everything Great Marriage Book", and the Marriage Guides at http://marriage.about.com.

Past Pittsburgh Weekend Couples Say:

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L&C - We thoroughly enjoyed our Engaged Encounter weekend. It allowed us to open the door to difficult conversations and create the dialogue needed for resolution. It permitted us tho write down what we've verbally committed to each other. Thank you for being with us. We greatly appreciate your time, your shared experiences, your wisdom, & guidance. We wish the best for you all on your continued marriage journey.

P&J - We loved this weekend and truly learned a lot about each other. We feel stronger in our relationship with each other and with God and our faith. Thank you for everything.

K&L - This was a wonderful weekend that helped reignite our love for one another & make us all of the more excited to prepare for and fully embrace our vocation.

J&L - We enjoyed the weekend more than we anticipated because it was both informational & reassuring. The variety of perspectives (older couples, younger couples & fellow engaged couples) was nice to share.

W&R - It really got us talking about the things we may have overlooked or discussed previously but got sidetracked. We had a real chance to step outside of our normal lives & into our faith & relationship together. We believe that all couples should take a similar amount of time to discuss values & the future.

R&M - This was a wonderful weekend and we thoroughly enjoyed our experience getting to know each other more and getting closer to God. I would not have changed a thing about this weekend and think it is perfect for couples.  Although we have been rational & methodical in working to prepare for marriage on our own, this has been a wonderful review of those most necessary and simple steps for a successful marriage. There is nothing so real or compelling of someones personal story, so thank you for this.

N&A - We enjoyed the weekend & the openness & honesty about your struggles. Thank you for your vulnerability. Things were well presented, appropriate & beneficial. The writing activities also helped us think through & process our thoughts. Thank you all for your time & dedication to the program.

B&B - We grew closer as a couple this weekend. We had very important and meaningful open discussions that will lead to a healthier and more solid faith and relationship.

J&J - We really appreciate the lead couples sharing honestly their stories (and some difficult to share). Your honesty and openness help us to be more open.

It was great to take a deeper dive into some of the issues and communicate on a deeper level. In the end, we are leaving with a stronger commitment & readiness to enter the sacrament of marriage with God.

K&A - We had a beautiful weekend together. We had discussed most of these things before, but this weekend gave us the opportunity to focus on us and our future marriage (not the wedding!)

M&M - Thank you for the hard work, for all that you shared, for being here and nowhere else. God appreciates this and we appreciate this.

S&D - We got much more than we expected & helped us talk more deeply on topics we had only touched upon. We really liked having a younger and a more experienced couple.

A&C - This weekend provided us the perfect environment to discuss and further develop our relationship. We enjoyed that our discussions were private, because that allowed us to truly open up to each otherl. The stories and notes of wisdom from the presenting teams were so valuable. We are already planning on recommending this retreat to other couples.

N&A - The weekend made us grow closer together. We enjoyed it and found it very beneficial to our relationship. It was a special time for us.

M&L - It is beneficial to set time aside to examine the health and strength of our relationship and to set our future goals. Thank you for presenting so beautifully, and opening up in a very personal way.

J&R - Thank you so much for your time/dedication/and willingness to share your lives with us for our benefit. This weekend was a true blessing and has helped our marriage preparation in a strong way!

M&P - After being together for 10 years, we were both surprised about how much new we learned about each other.

K&M - We felt very welcomed and entertained during our time here. Thank you for everything!

We loved the flow of the weekend and the alone time it provided us without distractions, to truly open up to one another. This weekend has enabled us to fill in some gaps in our relationship that we didn't even know we had. We consider this a real gift & appreciate the work everyone put into it. A & K

We were skeptical coming into this weekend, thinking that it would be very strict & rigid. Although we took the work seriously, you all made it so fun by sharing your stories. It was great to laugh and enjoy this experience. We will remember this forever in our relationship and the values that we learned will make us stronger as a couple. J & F

Thought this was an excellent experience for M & I to grow as a couple and learn more about each other.  Hearing the presenting couples open their lives and hearts to us helped me open up my heart to M.  I think we learned many skills that will assist us in having a successful, open and loving marriage.  The communication skills are things we can take with us for use in the future.  Thank you for providing the building blocks needed for a successful marriage.    M & M 

This has been a wonderful experience! It was very beneficial to come as a couple, leave the distractions behind, and focus on our current and future status. We were able to open up and act more freely with one another, which will allow our love to grow with each other and with God. J & J

We both had a great experience this weekend.  We've been together for a long time, and felt we knew all there was to know about each other, but this weekend helped us to learn even more.  The structured format caused us to both think about issues in a way we had not before.  As a result we grew even closer.   J & R 

The most important part of the weekend for M & I was really sitting down and reflecting on our past together, while making a pledge to continue to be open with each other in every facet of our lives.  I think this weekend will allow us to consciously focus on meeting each other's needs and uniting as one.  Thank you for your love and prayers.    M & C 

This has been an absolutely wonderful experience.  We thank all the presenting couples for sharing their stories.  We leave this weekend with renewed strength as our wedding approaches.    J & N 

E & I have really enjoyed our weekend here.  Being a bit nervous at first, we were unsure but quickly came to find how open and great our weekend would be.  It will really help strengthen our relationship.  We gained a deeper love and commitment to one another.  We truly appreciate all you've done.    C & E

G & I both feel the choice to attend is the best decision we have made.  It has helped us to find each other on a more spiritual level.  Thank you & God bless.    T & G

M & I already shared an open relationship and had previously discussed much.  Some questions here opened new avenues for sensitive topics.  This allowed us to share more of ourselves with each other alone and uninterrupted.  The weekend made me decide to renew my faith I had lost.  M & I decided to bring God & religion into our relationship for the first time.  Growing together spiritually will help bring us closer.     J & M

We greatly enjoyed spending quality time together this weekend.  It allowed us to discuss many issues / topics without distractions.  We feel closer to each other and God through this experience.  L & J

This weekend helped us to refocus on the important things in our life – our faith in God and our love for one another.  Thank you so much for sharing your time and personal experiences with us.  God bless!  S & B

This was an out standing weekend.  Clearly very valuable.  We received many recommendations to do this weekend and we are happy we came.  T & I had such a wonderful weekend!  I learned so much.  We truly grew closer together and bonded in a special way this weekend. Thank you for an invaluable communication technique.  K&T

Thank you for sharing your feelings and experiences.  They have helped us to clarify our feelings and expand our dialog into new realms.     C & D

M & I have been very touched by this weekend.  We have been able to refocus ourselves on the lifelong committment we are about to make.  This weekend was a perfect time to escape wedding plans and focus on the most improtant things - us, our marriage and God.   M & G

Positive experience – we gained a lot of positive communication from the individual time spent together.  Topics were meaningful to our discussions.    K & J

Enjoyed the topic sections.  They were excellent discussion topics.  Was a good format to write privately and then share as a couple.  We feel that the weeekend was beneficial as our relationship has grown stronger.  We were touched by the examples of the presenting couples.    R & L 

We thought this weekend was amazing!  It was so well planned and organized.  We both appreciated the time & energy put into it.  Most of all the weekend brought us closer as a couple and helped us to discuss things we had not yet discussed.  We feel strengthened in our relationship and are so glad we came.   

J & T

Thank you for helping us prepare for married life.  Your talks, prayers and guidance were an inspiration.  We will speak highly of our time spent here.   

T & J