Henry seemed almost to good to be true. The 25-year-old from the Milwaukee area was exactly what Kristen was looking for, but she was determined to make sure he was really everything he seemed.
The young couple’s CatholicMatch meeting had started in January 2007, after Kristen grew tired of looking for “Mr. Right in all the wrong places,” as she put it. The bar scene wasn’t going to get her the kind of man she wanted and she decided to join a website that would take her to a faith-filled Catholic husband.
“I came upon a profile without a picture that said ‘I’m a simple man’”, she recalled. The simiplicity of the entire profile was attractive to her, even without a picture. Kristen liked Henry’s interest in the outdoors and she sent him a message. He was interested enough, that as a free member, he signed up for a one-month subscription to read her reply.
In truth, he did more than just reply. He also uploaded a picture. “I about fell out of my chair when I saw how handsome he was,” Kristen told CatholicMatch.
They began writing each other back and forth, and in the course of the exchange, Henry said he was involved at the Newman Center at UW-Stevens Point. It provided the ideal chance for Kristen to do some recon work. She called the center and spoke to Father Tom and confirmed Henry’s participation.
“I explained that I was calling to see if he was legit,” Kristen said. “Father Tom jokingly replied how he was supposed to know I was legit.” The humorous exchange was the perfect backdrop for a Catholic romance headed for the altar.
That first date led to several more, as they met on weekends a few times each month. They shared hiking, camping and canoeing together and also shared in the reading of a devotional book, and openly talked faith and prayed together.
“I didn’t need to search anymore,” Kristen said. “I knew I wanted to marry him.” On July 5, 2008 they were wed and hoping a family is in their future.
