The Weekend is scheduled to be held on October 8-10, 2010. The event begins on Friday evening and lasts thru Sunday afternoon. It will be held at the Saipan Grand Hotel in Susupe. All married couples, priests and religious are invited to attend this twice-a-year only experience.
At the helm from start to finish are Jake and Jackie Van Dam, assisted by co-coordinator couple John and Carolyn Hosono. While the Van Dams are new at this role, it is not so for the Hosonos. In fact, they are quite an old hand at it – this being their second time around to co-coordinate a Weekend. Their first was the Spring Weekend of March 19-21 of this year. And prior to this, the Hosonos had coordinated the Weekend of October 16-18, 2009.
Jake & Jackie
While this may be their very first time to head a Weekend, the Van Dams are by no means novices at involvement in the Marriage Encounter community. Since coming out of their Weekend in October 2008, Jake and Jackie have been quite involved in service to the M.E. movement. They have served in different capacities since – from heading the Hospitality Committee at the 2010 March Weekend to co-facilitating “Steps Along Our Journey,” a post enrichment program for new members just coming off their Weekend.
The Van Dams were introduced to Marriage Encounter by their friends Russ & Kanae Quinn. However, it didn’t take much convincing for the young couple to make the Weekend. They say they didn’t hesitate at all because they truly believe Marriage Encounter would help their relationship. So their initial reaction to the invitation was they sure could use some help in their interpersonal communication skills to enhance their relationship.
Although they had never heard of M.E. until their arrival on-island, the Van Dams were told that the Weekend’s aim was to give couples the tools to communicate better with each other. This made good sense to them since they could see this as having a positive result to a better and closer marital relationship. Besides, going into the Weekend was a good excuse to include a great “weekend getaway,” sort of like a second honeymoon!
Of their M.E. Weekend, the Van Dams described their experience as a life-changing one. “Marriage Encounter has helped bring our relationship out of a dark pit and into the light and God,” was the way they talked about their experience. They said as a result, they grew closer in “more intimate ways” than before when even though they were married, they pretty much lived their lives as if still single. They recounted that the tools they learned enabled them to actually be able to talk with each other “without yelling” and the competition to out-volume the other was reduced. Moreover, they emphasized that the Weekend showed them the great importance of God in their marriage and that without Him, it (their marriage i.e.,) won’t work. They see God as an integral part of their marriage.
When asked why they gave their “yes” to coordinate the Weekend, their response was: “How could we say no? After everything Marriage Encounter has done for our relationship, we cannot say no to giving back to other couples. It’s such a beautiful movement that we love to be a part of and want for so many others.”
As for those readers who may be having some hesitancy to making the Weekend, the Van Dams have some encouraging words to them. “You only get out of your marriage what you put into it — so why not invest one weekend (for only $50) and help to better your relationship. It’s more than worth it.”
The Van Dams were married on 19 May 2007 in Sioux Center, Iowa. The officiating minister at their wedding was none other than their very own Grandpa Harry Van Dam!
The couple moved to Saipan mixing work with pleasure. They said they first came to teach at Saipan Community School while looking for “adventure and excitement and what better place than Saipan — halfway around the world and still like America!” Jake still teaches math and science at the same school while Jackie has just moved to Gold’s Gym as its general manager.
Carolyn & John
Carolyn & John Hosono are a pair in contrast. Carolyn posseses a bubbly personality, always ready for action and laughter, quick at jokes and very much a “people person.” John on the other hand is more on the quiet side, a picture of a thinker who quietly observes, and definitely studies and calculates matters at hand before shifting into action. Together they make a good mix as they portray a “balanced” picture of a couple otherwise totally opposites at cursory glance.
For Carolyn, exposure to Worldwide Marriage Encounter began even before her marriage. Many friends of her parents had made the Weekend experience. She had also attended many World Marriage Day celebrations in the diocese that she learned the M.E. theme song by heart. So when the invitation came from a childhood best friend to make the Weekend, Carolyn emailed back her response that by going into the Weekend together, their friendship would be mutually strengthened. She also stated in the email that in joining Marriage Encounter, this would open doors for many more good excuses to get together with her best friend.
For John, his explanation of his involvement with Marriage Encounter was that he had just come off a Cursillo retreat and that after this very uplifting experience, he was ripe for more “anything of the same.” So when they were invited by friends to make a Marriage Encounter Weekend, he was more than receptive to the invitation. Besides, describing his disposition at the time, he said he was open to anything “Catholic” after his Cursillo retreat.
After their Weekend, the Hosonos have nothing but praise for the benefits they derived from their M.E. encounter. Like the Van Dams and many others, they also wanted to pass on this same terrific experience to others — most especially to those who may still be debating to go in or not.
Commenting on the make-up of the Weekend, Carol shared that she was impressed with the well-structured format of the program where 3 married couples and a priest presented the Weekend and shared themselves to the participants. She says that this setup sort of even out the playing field between husbands and wives through the Team presentations because throughout the Weekend, the participants were given ample options to relate to the presentations as it relates to them and their marriages.
Another big discovery for the Hosonos in their Weekend was the closeness of interrelationship between their Sacrament of Marriage and to their priests – namely that the laity are considered as the spouses of priests and religious. They explained that because Christ is the Bridegroom and we, the Church, are His Bride so are we espoused to priests and religious who are Christ’s representatives here on earth. Such a sublime realization on their part prompted them to encourage us to be more responsive to our priests’ needs for love and care, just as they, the priests and religious should also strive to foster a closer and loving relationship with their people!
Carolyn and John Hosono made their Marriage Encounter Weekend in March of 2009. They have 7 children (1 girl and 6 boys) ranging in age from 8-19 years old.
