Our 15th Anniversary By Jaime Villarreal My story will be a reflection on our 15 years of marriage. By Jaime Villarreal

“I will remember always that marriage, like life, is a journey - not a destination - and that its treasures are found not just at the end but all along the way.” Anonymous Our Journey began when we met seven years before we married.

We met at church A new family visited our church and a girl named Lupita joined our youth group.

We became good friends At first we were just part of a growing youth group in which we were able to experience fun activities and know each other better.

We dated for seven years We definitely enjoyed getting to know each other and focusing enjoy each others company. Time flew….

After I graduated from college we got married In our plans for the future we decided to first finish our career education and then get married. And so we did. After I graduated from college we got married

Our Adventure began… It’s funny how we go through trainings for many things (such as driving, building, teaching) to be better prepared. When it comes to embark on the adventure of marriage we tend to just go with it.

Our Family Grows It’s a GIRL! Immediately after we got married our daughter Jasmine is born in the first year. She was 7lbs 6oz and measured 21 in length. It’s a GIRL!

Becoming a parent was both amazing and terrifying Becoming a parent was both amazing and terrifying. I felted overwhelmed with the responsibility of providing, securing and guiding. In other words being a dad. Parenting 101

Youth Pastors I guess being a father conditioned me to acknowledging my calling to guide and teach others. In this case me and my wife began to work with our church youth group. Its funny how our journey took us to a place we were familiar with, but now in a different role. Me and my wife met in a youth group and now we are leading one.

Youth Alive Club www.yausa.org Campus Ministry at Pace High School Youth Alive Club www.yausa.org We unexpectedly found ourselves starting a campus ministry at Pace High school where I started to teach. I didn’t even know this was possible but an enthusiastic sophomore approached me with a plan already set to go but missing a teacher sponsor. A ten year campus ministry focused on outreach lunch meetings began.

Next stop mission trip : Higuerias, Mx Around 2007 we began to visit several islands of the coast of Matamoros, Mexico on Mission Trips. Where we experienced how many families with very limited resources still found a way to not only survive but live a very fulfilled life. This was a live changing experience for me, my wife and daughter.

We become marriage educators By this time me and my wife felt the desire to use our ministry experience together to assist other couples in our church. I heard of a healthy initiative grant provided by the government to Cameron county and part of the grant provided marriage educational classes as well as openings to teach this classes in our community. www.harpcc.com

More marriages might survive if the partners realized that sometimes the better comes after the worse.  ~Doug Larson Like most marriages our marriage experienced difficult times. Now we know that most things we experienced were not a coincidence but had a purpose. God was always in control, the tools we learned and taught became the lifejacket that saved our marriage. Effective communication helped us restore each others imperfections.

Testifying in favor of House Bill for Healthy Marriage Initiative Me an my wife were very much convinced of the vital need to provide couples with educational tools to live a healthy and fulfilling marriage. We were invited to testify in favor of a house bill for the healthy marriage initiative in front of the state senate committee at the capitol. As a result the bill was passed and now couples who go get a licenses to get married are offered incetives and waivers if they enlist to take marriage education courses.

Marriage Courses Taken: Active Communication Money and Finance Personalities Romance & Intimacy The courses we took through the harp (Hispanic active relationship program) included active communication, money and finance personalities and romance and intimacy.

www.harpcc.com www.smartmarriages.com www.familylife.com www.fireproofthemovie.com www.lovedarestories.com This are the websites that we have used as resources to assist couples in marriage education.

Our wedding was many years ago. The celebration continues to this day. ~Gene Perret Looking ahead to enjoy everyday of this amazing journey together….. We have enjoyed every moment of our lives, the difficult times have made us stronger with God’s help and our future never looked to promising.

Credits Created by Jaime Villarreal on a Dell laptop Software used: PowerPoint 2007 and photoFiltre Non-personal photos were from courtesy of Microsoft Online Image Gallery Personal photos taken by Jaime or Lupita Villarreal by camera Texas and Mexico. This presentation has been licensed under Creative Commons as an Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States license.