Finding Someone to Come Home To

In 2012, Rebecca and Tony met on CatholicMatch (

For their honeymoon, they went to Ireland and Scotland. "We spent nearly three weeks going around the whole country of Ireland on a tour, then we flew over to Scotland for three days. We stayed at Castle Forbes for one night and also took a boat tour of Loch Ness—but we didn’t see the monster."

One of their fondest memories of their time in Scotland was an unexpected six-mile trek. After spending time at Castle Forbes, they were dropped off at a restaurant three miles ways.  Before they realized that the restaurant was closed, their driver had driven away! "At that point, we thought we would have to walk back three miles without eating, but luckily a woman, who was out walking her dog, told us there was another town a mile and a half up the road that had a restaurant, so we walked there and had a lovely meal. On the way back to the castle, we kept getting delayed because we couldn't resist stopping to pet the ponies, horses, cows, and sheep that came up to the fence

begging to be petted. It was a very charming walk through the Scottish highlands," Rebecca remembers.

After their visit to Scotland, they flew back to Ireland for their return trip to the United States, but the airline personnel went on strike, and so they ended up spending an extra day in the Ireland. This gave them a chance to visit the Knock Shrine, a popular Catholic pilgrimage site. In 1879, 15 people beheld an apparition of Our Lady, St. Joseph, St. John the Evangelist, a Lamb, and a cross on an altar at the gable wall of the parish church.

“Knock is harder to get to than you'd think! No trains go directly there, so we had to take a bus and then we only had 20 minutes before the last bus headed back.”

Travel Companions

Rebecca and Tony love to travel together; they have gone on several trips, including out to Long Island for her cousin’s wedding and up to Door County for their first wedding anniversary. March of 2o15, they traveled to Hawaii for a friends wedding.

Tony’s friend teaches English in Japan, and his bride is Japanese, so Hawaii was a good

midpoint for their two families. Tony and Rebecca arrived on Oahu a couple of days before the wedding, so they were able to tour Pearl Harbor and go snorkeling in Hanauma Bay. After the wedding, the couple stayed in Hawaii for several days. Their adventures included taking a helicopter ride over all of Kauai, kayaking on the Wailea River, and attending Mass at the oldest church in Kauai. They also flew to Maui for a few days, where they took a whale watching cruise, drove the scenic Road to Hana, and drove up the extinct volcano Haleakala. "That was quite an adventure for me since I’m terrified of heights," laughs Rebecca.

Marriage Has Been Smooth Sailing

Rebecca and Tony love being married. For them, the best part of married life is having a constant companion and having someone to come home to. “We also both appreciate having someone always in our corner,” says the couple.

Rebecca says, “I was prepared for marriage to be more difficult than it has been, from talking to other couples. Every day we’re married, I’m even happier, and in my experience, being married is much more wonderful than being single by a long shot. We’ll celebrate our second anniversary in May."

Tony, who had a previous marriage that was annulled, says this marriage is much happier than his brief first one.

Even though marriage has been pretty much smooth sailing for them, they say that when they have fought, it’s mostly been due to miscommunications—though luckily that happens infrequently for them. Another thing that can cause friction between them is that Rebecca is more extroverted than Tony. “However, either of us is extreme, so we have been able to compromise well between being social and spending time alone.”

I asked the couple to share some advice for those struggling to find a spouse online.

Tony advises: “Don't limit yourself to online dating; join groups in your town that do fun things.”

Rebecca adds, “Ladies: don't be afraid to break the ice! I contacted Tony first.” A good point considering a recent CatholicMatch Poll revealed that more than 48% of members wait for someone to make first contact rather than initiating it.

Rebecca prays for the members of CatholicMatch when she says her daily Rosary. She and Tony recommend that members pray the Rosary to discern God's will for their lives.