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homerhorizon.com NEWS<br />
the Homer Horizon | February 15, 2018 | 3<br />
New Life Community Church celebrates love with event for couples<br />
Attendees enjoy time<br />
with their valentine<br />
with night of dinner,<br />
games and dancing<br />
Laurie Fanelli<br />
Freelance Reporter<br />
Joy, fellowship and a<br />
touch of romance were in<br />
the very snowy air at New<br />
Life Community Church’s<br />
Celebrating Love event on<br />
Friday, Feb. 9.<br />
The dinner for couples<br />
gave parishioners the opportunity<br />
to enjoy an evening<br />
out with their valentine<br />
while celebrating God’s<br />
blessings with their community.<br />
The old adage “love conquers<br />
all” served as an impromptu<br />
theme for the evening,<br />
as the pairs who came<br />
out braved a mighty winter<br />
storm to honor the one who<br />
holds their heart.<br />
“The snow is just another<br />
reason to come in and warm<br />
up with your loved one,”<br />
said the Rev. Eric Marquez,<br />
who has been at New<br />
Life Community Church of<br />
Homer Glen since last year.<br />
Marquez, along with his<br />
wife, Connie, wanted to host<br />
this first-time dinner for couples<br />
as a way to honor love<br />
in all its forms.<br />
“What we’re trying to<br />
do today is celebrate love,<br />
which is the name of the<br />
event,” Marquez said.<br />
“There’s much to complain<br />
about in our world and in our<br />
economy, and this is a time<br />
to remember that God has<br />
blessed us with so much.<br />
“It’s really an act of gratitude<br />
to help us focus on what<br />
really matters, what’s really<br />
important. It’s a demonstration<br />
of God’s love for us.”<br />
Along with a candle-lit<br />
meal featuring Italian food<br />
from Little Joe’s Famous<br />
Pizza and Restaurante, of<br />
New Lenox, Celebrating<br />
Love attendees were treated<br />
to a variety of games, dancing<br />
and a table of sweet desserts<br />
that even included a<br />
chocolate fountain. There<br />
was also a photo booth and a<br />
video station where “Do you<br />
remember when?” prompts<br />
encouraged couples to reminisce<br />
about how they first<br />
came together.<br />
Diane and Brian Schmidt<br />
attend New Life Church,<br />
and they thought Celebrating<br />
Love was a perfect date<br />
night. Diane even helped<br />
on the committee, planning<br />
a newlywed game and fun<br />
teamwork challenges for<br />
couples to participate in following<br />
dinner.<br />
“I think it’s a great idea<br />
for couples to celebrate their<br />
marriage and have a date<br />
night and enjoy each other,”<br />
Diane said.<br />
Brian added, “And it’s<br />
a good way to get to know<br />
some of the other couples in<br />
the church, too.”<br />
This happy couple had<br />
differing opinions on the<br />
romanticism of the over 10<br />
inches of snow blanketing<br />
Homer Glen. For Brian –<br />
who’d been out shoveling all<br />
day – the winter weather was<br />
a less than positive addition<br />
to the evening’s agenda, but<br />
Diane thought it was downright<br />
beautiful.<br />
“I like the snow,” she said.<br />
“I like driving in it, and I do<br />
think it’s romantic when it’s<br />
freshly fallen.”<br />
Soon enough, the snow<br />
will be gone, and spring<br />
flowers will begin to bloom<br />
just in time for the Easter<br />
season.<br />
“We’re about seven weeks<br />
away from Easter,” Marquez<br />
said. “That’s a great<br />
time when people who are<br />
unchurched come back to<br />
church. New Life Community<br />
Church is going to be<br />
Couples (left to right) Juleah Puccinelli and Caleb Tolleson, along with Manny Marquez and Hannah Page, toast to love<br />
Friday, Feb. 9, at New Life Community Church. Photos by Laurie Fanelli/22nd Century Media<br />
Diane and Brian Schmidt relish spending time together at<br />
the event.<br />
reaching out to those in this<br />
community who may not<br />
be churched this Easter and<br />
Good Friday.”<br />
As the dinner for couples<br />
progressed, Marquez was<br />
looking forward to taking<br />
time out to honor his wife and<br />
celebrate the love they share.<br />
“I know she’s been working<br />
really, really hard on all<br />
of this, so I hope she gets a<br />
chance to relax, be with me<br />
and have some fun,” he said.<br />
“And, for us to remember the<br />
fact of how God brought us<br />
The Rev. Eric Marquez, of New Life Community Church,<br />
leads a prayer before dinner is served at Celebrating Love.<br />
together and what he’s been<br />
doing in our life since. We<br />
can just be grateful. That’s<br />
what I hope for.”<br />
New Life Community<br />
Church – which is a nondenominational<br />
Christian<br />
church – holds worship services<br />
every Sunday at 10<br />
a.m., and the services can<br />
also be streamed on Facebook.<br />
For more information,<br />
visit www.newlifecommu<br />
nity.church/Locations/hom<br />
er-glen.
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