Jeremy and Karen Head | 7.19.2008

We met in high school, our junior year.  We dated the rest of high school and all through college, 5 ½ years in all.  In college, we became very involved at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center.  It formed our relationship and fostered the faith that we now share.  While we grew up going to Catholic grade schools and high schools, it was not until college that we discovered how to truly live our faith.  We really began to center our relationship on Christ and we owe that in large part to SRBCNC.  We became engaged in July of 2006 and were married July 19, 2008 by Father Dittmer.  We will be continuing our support of St. Robert Bellarmine’s as we enter the next phase of our lives.

Andrew and Kate Lawrence | 7.26.2008

We were were married on July 26, 2008. While attending ISU we met at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center as President and Vice-President of the Bellarmine Board. The SRBCNC played a large role in our formation through activities such as Koinonia, Bible Studies, and Spiritual Direction.  Our best formation at SRBCNC came from the atmosphere of prayer and the centrality of the Sacraments. This has formed the basis for our married life together. Kate and Andrew are both currently teachers in the Bloomington/Normal area.

Ryan and Katie Hausauer | 6.14.2008

We met back in high school when a mutual friend had a get-together.  We started dating in January 2002 and knew from the beginning that we had something special.  We went to separate colleges (ISU and UofI) but were able to make our relationship grow closer and deeper.  In May 2006 we got engaged in Moab, Utah on an off-roading trail named Top of the World.  It was quite a sight and a wonderful beginning to our next stage of life.  Throughout college we enjoyed going to Mass together at the Newman Center and also shared our faith in the Koinonia retreats.  After graduation, we both made a big move from the northern suburbs to Peoria for jobs.  Ryan works as a mechanical engineer for Caterpillar and I am an English teacher for Peoria Notre Dame High School.  On June 14th, 2008 we were married in our home parish in Mundelein, IL.  We look forward to what God has in store for us next!

Moose and Jeanne Aderhold | 7.12.2008

We met at a barbecue that welcomed the students to campus held at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Newman Center.  We were able to build a great friendship through the many different opportunities the SRBCNC offered us such as volunteer trips to Nazareth and Bethlehem farm, dances, and sharing a meal after Mass. When we began to date the SRBCNC continued to offer a community that supported and encouraged couples to grow closer to Christ and one another. Our wedding day, July 12, 2008, was wonderful and filled with peace. We were so happy to share our new vocation with our friends and family and our anniversary date with Fr. Dittmer who had become a priest on July 12, 1997.

Drake and Lauren Steed | 6.27.2008

We met five years ago when we were freshmen at Illinois State and quickly formed a close friendship through our involvement at the St. Robert Bellarmine Catholic Center.  Upon discovering that we share Marian birthdays (Drake on the Assumption of our Lady and Lauren born on the Immaculate Conception), we continued to delve more deeply into friendship and discerned a dating relationship.  We began dating in December of our sophomore year and owe our faith formation to the Catholic Center, particularly to Father Dittmer, who spiritually directed each of us.  Our marriage has only brought us closer in our love for one another, and we are so thankful for this beautiful vocation!  We are now living in Urbana where Drake is a music therapist at a Residential Treatment Center, and Lauren is pursuing a Masters degree in Social Work as well as working as a supervisor for a national tutoring program.  We look forward to all that God has in store for us! 

Erik and Chrissy McCarrin | 5.23.2008

We are high school sweethearts, dated for 5 1/2 years and married since May 23 of 2008.  I was raised in a strong Protestant family, not catholic, so at the beginning of college and as our relationship continued to grow more serious, we had a lot of disagreement about religion.  I attended Catholic Masses with Erik on the weekends and he tried to get us more involved with the Newman Center through Koinonia and Mass. We eventually both decided that we would be married and raise our family Catholic. We felt a whole new peace about our relationship with God when attending Catholic Mass. This past January we were persuaded by close friends and Father Dittmer to attend the FOCUS conference in Texas. It was the most amazing time we have ever had in a religious setting together and it helped us both to understand that we can learn and grow in our Catholic faith.  We loved having Father Dittmer as our priest and felt that he played a great role in our faith walk. We were so happy to have him marry us and very honored - it was the best ceremony we could have ever asked for! We are continuously trying to grow in God together and learn this thing called marriage!