They Built Their Marriage On Friendship

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When Adam and Marisa found each other on CatholicMatch in the summer of 2017, it was the clarity and genuineness of their profiles that stuck out to both of them.  From the beginning, they both recognized the importance of a strong friendship leading up to marriage. It is the solid foundation of their friendship that has led them to a happy, fruitful marriage together.

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“Adam has just got a really good heart and is a genuine gentleman. He cares really deeply about a lot of things.” 

Marisa joined CatholicMatch in 2002, back when it was known as St. Raphael’s.

When she joined the site, online dating was still very new, but she recognized early on that it may be harder to find somebody who shared her values and faith later on in life. Nearly twenty years later, she was able to find that person in Adam.

When Adam initially found Marisa’s profile she was in a transitory period of her life regarding career and future. He knew for certain that he wanted to find a partner who shared his faith, and he was not willing to compromise. His desire to find a partner with similar values brought him to CatholicMatch. When Adam saw Marisa’s profile, he decided to send her a smiley face. At the time, Marisa was not even subscribed to the site! She resubscribed to open his message, and now the rest is history.

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They chose to run the distance!

When they first began talking to each other, Marisa and Adam were in a long-distance relationship.  After a few months of talking and building a strong connection, Marisa made the first move to meet up. She suggested that she and Adam spend Thanksgiving 2017 together. They met up in the Wisconsin Dells for coffee, lunch, and church. 

Adam recalled how special their first date was because they were asked to bring up the gifts at the first Mass they attended together.

Marisa and Adam said that their relationship has been strengthened by putting God first and setting realistic expectations to prepare for marriage. Early on, Marisa said that they began to incorporate nightly prayers into their relationship. This bolstered their connection to each other and their connection to God as a couple.

He brought their future to prayer.

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In the summer of 2019, Adam began to pray seriously about marriage. He recalled how he had prayed for God for so long to send him a wife, but it was not until he gave his desires up to God that he felt at peace. He realized that God had placed Marisa in his life for the purpose of marriage. Adam said that giving your troubles over to God changes everything, and encourages others to let go of expectations and put their futures in God’s hands.

Around the time that Adam began planning to ask Marisa to marry him, they went on a hike to the North Shore in Lake Superior. At a clearing on the trail, there was a big tree with two trunks growing out of one base. “Marisa kept going on and on about how the tree represents unity and two becoming one.” 

He decided that was the best place for him to propose in the future. He used the excuse of having won a free pint of beer at a local brewery to bring her back to Lake Superior in September. He brought her on the same hike and, at the clearing, Adam distracted Marisa by asking her to look up a local attraction on her phone. Then he got down on one knee…

He did not even get the words out before Marisa was saying yes.

They had an impromptu photoshoot when another couple arrived shortly after their engagement. Marisa explained that her engagement ring is a braided twist, which also symbolizes unity and two becoming one.

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Marisa and Adam both described each other as being a major support and source of love and care in each other’s lives. Marisa shared that at the rehearsal dinner, Adam surprised her with a quality cap and gown. She had graduated from a doctorate program in May 2020 but was unable to have an in-person celebration due to the lockdowns.

“It really shows who Adam is and his care.”

They had a small wedding ceremony at Saint Paul’s Cathedral in October 2020.

At the wedding, they were able to honor their shared devotion to Our Lady through a beautiful Marian Devotion.

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Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, they narrowed their wedding down to 17 guests including immediate family, spouses, and the bridal party only. “It was perfect because we got to hang out with everyone all weekend long, and we actually got to interact and have conversations and enjoy each other’s company.”

Their marriage has been filled with blessings, both big and small!

The biggest of which is their eight-month-old son, Lincoln. Marisa has a condition that could prevent her from having children. Despite the challenges, Marisa and Adam quickly had a child after they were married.

They are very happy and thankful for having met on CatholicMatch.

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