We admit it. We’re one of those love-at-first sight couples. What’s more, within the first two weeks of dating at a Catholic social teaching seminar in Krakow, Poland, back in the summer of 2000, we knew we wanted to do ministry together. And now, 23 years into the journey of marriage, we can see the contours of three special seasons of our work.

Season 1: 2006-2014. Alongside raising our first children and Soren’s full-time work for the Diocese of Arlington, we launched the non-profit John Paul II Fellowship as our “side hustle.” We had been formed by the holy pope’s call to do our part for the new evangelization, so with a shoestring budget and dedicated volunteers, we hosted dozens of culture-building events, talks and dinners for young adults in parish halls in the DC area.

Our hope was to lead with beauty and give others the gift of an immersive experience in the faith—beginning with the Mass, and extending to inspiring talks and discussions, elegant candlelit dinners, and fellowship over dessert and a glass of wine until late in the evening.

It was a special season, but in 2009, with several kids in tow and a growing fatigue with setting up aluminum chairs in parish basements (and all those heavy bins of supplies!), we had a vision. The time was right to invite these hundreds of young adults to take this beauty out into the open by launching a café. We would call it Trinity House. For the next five years, we put on dozens more parish events as we worked to raise the money needed for start-up.

Season 2: 2014-2019. We finally opened the cafe on Oct. 1, 2014, the Feast of St. Therese, in the heart of old town Leesburg, VA. We hung the Trinity icon above the fireplace in the main dining room, and invited the Holy Spirit to imbue the café with a “welcome–listen–serve” atmosphere that would once again lead with beauty…and winsomely invite others to discover the truth and goodness of Jesus Christ. That was the idealistic beginning to what turned into a rather sharp start-up curve. Ha! We can look back and laugh. Barely.
 
Meanwhile, Season 3 beckoned. As we raised our children and witnessed the phenomenal challenges buffeting every Christian family—from secularization and the fall-off in religious practice to busyness, distraction, anxiety, divorce and more—our mentor Saint John Paul II’s focus on marriage and family teachings came into ever sharper focus. And several questions began to take shape deep in our hearts:

• Where is the blueprint for the Catholic family today?
• If the family is a ‘communion of persons’ (Catechism 2205) and image of the Trinity, then how do we live out that powerful truth in daily family life?
• What if we could pursue our dream of going full-time together in a ministry that would inspire, equip and encourage families…that would be the kind of ministry we wish had been there for us when we brought our first newborn home?

Season 3: 2019-2024. In the spring of 2019, we took these questions to prayer…and to an initial short-list of potential supporters. And with a few checks and a lot of prayer, God invited us into a new season. Five years ago this week, we began full-time work together, renaming the ministry to Trinity House Community to better convey the heart of our mission to inspire families to make home a taste of heaven for the renewal of faith and culture.

And our beloved Trinity House Cafe + Market took on more significance as not only an outpost of evangelization, but also an outreach to families, a vision for homes and communities for Christ that can only grace our culture if the family thrives. It continues to ground us in our locality and embodiment in ways that are deeply satisfying, and the community that is flourishing there is its own reward.

So many of you have traveled this new season with us closely, through your prayers, support and timely words of encouragement. This season has given us a front-row seat to miracles, graces, heartaches, misunderstandings, a podium at the Vatican’s World Meeting of Families, and the ‘Top 10’ answered prayers we’ve already seen this year.

Closer to home, we’ve taken part in the bracing drama of love and forgiveness that every family experiences when they set out to follow Jesus—when they put faith at the foundation of their family and cherish and defend it. We wouldn’t trade a day of it, and we give God thanks for the supporters whose responses—through their own charitable gifts, and all by God’s grace—make this all possible.
 
Inspired by the same vision that compelled us “into the deep” in 2006, 2014, and five years ago this week in 2019, we ask: Will you partner with Trinity House Community by praying daily for the ministry, by possibly taking the step of faith to launch a Trinity House Community Group at your own parish, and by making a gift toward our mid-year appeal? Your one-time or monthly gift of $10, $50, $100 or more will bless so many families at 20 parishes in 9 states…and growing every day!

If you can support us monthly at $10-49, you’ll receive a beautiful Trinity House Cafe mug (photo below)…and if you can join us at $50/month+, you’ll also receive a signed and dedicated copy of our new book, Heaven in Your Home Letters & Guide: Inspiration & Tools for Building a Trinity House.

Thank you for partnering with us in this mission to renew the family!