These Free Members of CatholicMatch Were Skeptical About Online Dating Until...

Leanel was skeptical about using an online dating site. She knew friends who had met their spouses online, but she was still concerned about safety and reliability. However, the only Catholics she seemed to meet in her daily life were not practicing the Faith, and it was important to her to date someone who took the Church seriously. Her brother had heard about CatholicMatch and convinced her to take a look. At first, she only used the free membership, but then on her 29th birthday, as a gift to herself, she signed up for full membership.

Sharing a Love for the Church and a Passion for Running

"My brother browsed the profiles with me. It was kind of fun, like shopping!" Leanel joked. Her voice softened as she warmly recalled, "Then I came across Jordan. He had a running picture, and I love to run!" Leanel decided right away to message him and ask him about running.

Jordan had been using the free membership since 2010, when he was 26. He wanted to meet a committed Catholic, but he also wanted to be cautious with his finances, especially since he had a daughter from a previous relationship. When he saw Leanel's message, he was taken in by her picture. He was willing to pay for a full membership to be able to return Leanel's message and to get to know her. "I decided it was worth the investment because she was so beautiful," he said.

Leanel and Jordan messaged each other 10 times, then decided to exchange phone numbers. They called and texted each other for a month before deciding to meet in person for a Saturday brunch in Monterey, CA. This was halfway between her home in the Bay Area and his ho

me in Fresno. After lingering over their meal to talk about their lives, they went for a seven mile run. They ended their day together with going to Mass, something that was very important to both of them.

Leanel was signed up for the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco, so Jordan decided to register, too. He had sworn he would never do another marathon after breaking his foot the year before while running the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Marathon. The opportunity to train with Leanel broke his resolve, though. They decided to meet every weekend to share a meal, train, and worship together at Mass. Going to Mass in their running clothes was a little awkward, but they wanted to keep the Faith central to their relationship.

Overcoming for the Sake of Love

There were things to overcome, however. Among the most important things to consider was whether Leanel was ready to be a mother. On his profile, Jordan was upfront about his one year old daughter Kira and his commitment to help raise her. Although he and his daughter's mother never married, he felt completely grateful and blessed to be a father. Leanel admired Jordan's love for little Kira and thought it wonderful that he proudly displayed pictures of her on his profile.

In addition to motherhood, Leanel also had to c

onsider moving, if their relationship became serious, since Jordan was devoted to staying in Fresno with Kira. The possibility of leaving a strong career as a lab manager at Stanford Hospital was not something she took lightly. Some people discouraged Leanel to not go through with the relationship, but she decided to be open. "God would want you to be happy," she told Jordan. "Just because you have a child doesn't mean you don't deserve to receive the sacrament of marriage."

When they decided to date exclusively in August 2013, issues began to surface between Jordan and Leanel. Despite this,they loved each other enough to work through things. They each sought out a therapist, and they met with priests. "We see our relationship as something worth changing for," Jordan explained. They see God using their relationship to make each other better people. "When you have your Catholic Faith, you can overcome anything," Jordan said.

A Surprise Proposal

After dating for two years, they talked more and more about getting married. Leanel had said she wanted a surprise proposal, so Jordan had to be discreet as he made his plans in December of 2015. He wanted to talk to her father before proposing, and this was the only thing that clued in Leanel that a proposal might come soon.

"My family was too excited to not tell me," Leanel laughed. To keep Leanel guessing thoug

h, Jordan told her that he wanted to finish training for the California Highway Patrol (CHP) in Sacramento before getting married. They had talked about Jordan's possible career with CHP, which would allow him to leave the more volatile field of marketing for the security of law enforcement. After training, he said he'd move back to Fresno and then propose. She was disappointed, but Leanel decided not to worry.

On December 26, 2015, Leanel's family threw their large, annual Christmas party, which included extended family. They held the celebration in a favorite Vietnamese restaurant with plenty of space and karaoke. While Leanel was deep in conversation with an aunt and uncle, suddenly all her family started cheering. Confused, she looked up to see Jordan with the microphone, then getting down on one knee. He presented her with the ring and asked her to marry him. She wept with joy and emphatically said, "Yes!"

Keeping God at the Center

The

couple is thrilled to be engaged. They love being a team as they plan the wedding, which they intend to have at Stanford Memorial Church. They are grateful for all the support they've had from friends and family as they start this new leg of their journey. They continue to keep their Faith at the center, and Facetime each other every night to talk, pray, and read the Bible. They proudly tell people that they met through CatholicMatch.

Jordan says that God uses CatholicMatch to bring people together and give meaning to life through love and marriage. Leanel agrees, "I feel so blessed to have used it!"