How being mentored made a difference in our marriage

Guest testimonial by Julia and Chad Buddenberg
​for Tuesday@10:10 blogpost

A year after Chad and I met, we knew that we wanted to spend our lives together. Combining our families was a lot easier than learning to communicate effectively. Our children loved each other and we all got along well. We had very different ideas on how to raise kids and very different communication styles. We were arguing a lot and feeling the stress of possibly another failed relationship. 

We heard about the Marriage Resource Center and RINGS class. We attended a Saturday RINGS session and loved the tools given to us to communicate in a loving and productive way. Not long after, we decided to take the advice of our teachers to seek out a mentor couple through MRC.

​The very first meeting was like meeting new friends instead of "instructors." They knew the struggles that we faced and connected with us on an emotional level almost immediately. We met with them weekly, but we could have met with them daily and learned something new every time. We never felt judged or that we were failing in our relationship. We just needed to appreciate our differences, put the work into succeeding, and seeing each other through loving eyes instead of focusing on what was wrong with us.

During our weeks of mentoring we got engaged, and knew we needed Eddie and Jackie there as our support. Without much notice, Eddie married us on May 1, 2015, and Jackie was there as a witness. Without them and their guidance, we believe it may have been a much longer and painful road to where we are now. We are grateful for the loving support that they have given us. 

Stepfamily mentoring by Eddie and Jackie Jaudon

Without them and their guidance, we believe it may have been a much longer and painful road to where we are now. We are grateful for the loving support that they have given us.

Julia and Chad referring to their mentor couple,
​Eddie and Jackie Jaudon