Marriage Retreats

faith & marriage ministry

What are couples saying about their experience on a marriage retreat?

- Scott & Jill - John & Linda

The Willwoods Community is blessed to be able to work with the St. Joseph Abbey Christian Life Center as a place to host our Married Couples Retreats.

Each retreat will be led by peer married couples and a priest. Retreats begin on Saturday morning and end on Sunday after lunch.

Purpose:
Our Married Couples Retreats are a great opportunity for married couples to break away from the daily struggles and tasks and spend time rejuvenating and enriching their marriage.

Accommodations:
The Christian Life Center can accommodate 20 couples. Every couple will receive a private room with queen bed with private bathroom.
Guest rooms, chapel, lounge, library, and dining room are all located in the same building.

Cost:
There are no fees for the Married Couples Retreat; this program operates through the donations of our guests. Those who are able to give more than the expenses involved, please do so. Those of more limited means may give whatever they can.
Pre-registration deposit is $50. The total suggested donation for the retreat is $220 per couple. ($50 Pre-registration deposit + $170 = the total $220 suggested donation)
You may send your deposits to:
Willwoods Married Retreats
3330 N. Causeway Blvd., Suite 345
Metairie, LA 70002
Checks payable to: Willwoods Community

At the end of every retreat we ask our couples to fill out an evaluation form. Below are just some of the comments we have received, thanks & glory be to God!

“I think everyone, catholic or not, all married couples should attend. It filled my heart with something so powerful!! I’m so glad we came! I think my husband and I are better people for coming.”
“Spending time with my wife, away from all of the distraction and rediscovering why we were married in the first place.”
“Just a great overall experience to bring a married couple closer together and closer to God and their faith.”
“Gave my wife and I focus and some ideas on how to resolve issues that had plagued our marriage for years”
“Every married couple needs to experience this together”
“It brought me closer to my husband through reflection time.”
“This weekend saved our marriage. It provided just what we needed to reunite as a couple”
“It was a beautiful weekend that gives me great hope that my marriage will be invigorated, and rather than accept the state of mediocrity, and strive to love better and try greater intimacy.”
“Helped us to fell closer to God”
“Thank you for the opportunity to enrich our marriage. The opportunity to have a great reconciliation in a relaxed setting. It was good to meet other couples willing to work on their relationship- people faithful to God.”
“Strengthen faith in God and learning that others have more problems than you; embrace God to give them the strength and courage to face their adversities”
“It invigorated our marriage”
“Wow- Thanks for opening my eyes to what I have in life and marriage.”
“Whatever the reason that we may have come, we know God has a great plan for us as we continue to grow in our marriage the sharing of the couples was inspiring”
“Brought home with me peace in our marriage.”
“Time to reflect and talk to my wife.”
“It gave us a time for a renewal of our own marriage and to discuss where we needed to improve in our relationship with one another.”
“Thank you for this experience. On the whole, I benefited and am grateful to have been here.”
“It has been a wonderful experience for us as a married couple. Speaking to other couples with their stories was very helpful to our marriage as we are going through tough times.”
“We learned a lot and can’t wait to do another Willwood’s retreat!”
“This was so wonderful for us! Thank you!!”
“Was a great refreshment for our marriage. I will promote the retreat to friends who are searching.”
“Outstanding weekend! I was able to reconnect with my wife.”

Some Insights Gained from Couples:

“How to be more open in my marriage and how to talk to my wife with love”
“Gave me time to sit back and review my marriage and had new ideas and ways to maybe improve.”
“Overall it was great! I can’t wait to come again. It helped me to refocus on the importance of working on our relationship and ways to enhance our love for each other and God”
“Realizing to recognize my spouse more visually and verbally”
“Hearing other couples going through the same difficulties and knowing that together with Christ they can be overcome.”
“Acknowledgement of how blessed I am to have my spouse and knowing our Christian Foundation will get us through anything on Earth and hopefully attain everlasting life.”
“Knowing that I am not alone in this struggle to respond to God’s call.”
“The idea of praying together as a couple and realizing that God is the rock of our foundation and though his grace we will continue to be built up.”
“Reiterating the fundamental characteristics of the sacrament and how you have to work to keep your priorities straight”
“Reaffirmation of ‘death to self’”
“Remember to look at her (or for the wife to look at husband), marriage is a joint work in progress that needs constant massaging.”
“Seeing real couples who have had similar struggles and who have successfully endured the problems.”
“Loved hearing about other married couples life experiences – successes and challenges and how they got through them.”
“Having a priest as well as married couples young and old tell of their experiences. Questions to discuss with your spouse helps you get closer to God and to your spouse.”
“Knowing that through prayer and communication with one another, we allow God into our hearts and lives and in affect commit to one another our love.
“Very enlightening and very spiritual – hopeful. Help us to realize how important Jesus is in our marriage.”
“It was a wonderful experience! Truly refreshing to hear ideas and suggestions to help enhance our sacrament and our Catholic Faith!!”
“Thinking about my partner’s feelings and relating to him.”
“Stories from other couples; helped me to focus on my spouse; liked the questions- they forced you to think.”
“The topic of Hope and the couple presentations to know that our journey is a continual walk w/ the Lord and the Holy Spirit to guide us in our relationship & communication.”
“That even though there are struggles, we need to have hope to get through them.”
“Hearing the couples talk about their lives, and relaying it to my own life. Having couple time without interruptions.”
“You’ve got to have hope and be anchored in the Lord”
“Witnessing God’s power at work in so many different ways in the different couples helped me/us to remember that we only just need to let ourselves be present to Him.”
“Getting in touch with our relationship with God. Seeing other people have issues and we are not alone in the struggles life has for us.”
“From the speakers I realize I am not alone. Everybody has their crosses, and we have to carry them with happiness and hope for a better tomorrow.”
“Time together witnessing the love the speaker couples had for one another. Seeing how important God is for their continued bond after so many years together”
“Sharing by varied aged couples. Young people loving their vocation and sharing it is a wonderful gift of hope to us older couples who see so many young people struggling.”
“The special time we spent talking about how we will change our marriage. The reminder of how much we love each other.”
“Time together witnessing the love the speaker couples had for one another. Seeing how important God is for their continued bond after so many years together”
“Time slowed. Time to talk and focus on our marriage. Reminder that God is absolutely necessary in our marriage.”