About Us
National Marriage Week seeks to work with, connect, and unite:
Church Leaders
Content Leaders
Community Leaders
Policy and Research Leaders....
and Couples.
National Marriage Week is the brainchild of Richard Kane who started it in the UK in 1996.
Marriage Week was then adopted in the U.S. in 2002 by Brent Barlow and Diane Sollee of Smart Marriages. In 2009, a group led by Chuck Stetson and Sheila Weber of the Let's Strengthen Marriage Campaign, working with dozens of organizations in the U.S. and many leaders in the marriage movement, developed the National Marriage Week USA site.
In 2022, Marriage Initiative was asked to serve and take over the leadership of National Marriage Week.
As we move forward, we recognize and remember the purpose of National Marriage Week, which is to bring people and organizations together, with the focus of celebrating marriage intentionally each year from Feb 7th to the 14th. Even though each year's launch and focus rises during that one key week; our messaging and our desire to strengthen and enrich marriages, will be all year long.
Families flourish when mom and dad have a strong, healthy marriage. A strong marriage makes for a strong family. And a strong family makes a strong community. Together, as a collaborative effort with government entities, churches, organizations, and individuals - we can prioritize the priceless value of marriage, and help our nation (and more importantly, our families) flourish.
National Marriage Week has now spread to at least 28 countries. Visit http://www.marriage-weekinternational.com to learn more.
Join us.
Together, we are better.
Our Team
Arlene Pellicane
Spokesperson
Arlene Pellicane is a top marriage and parenting author and speaker. She has appeared on several media outlets like the Today Show, Wall Street Journal, Focus on the Family, Fox & Friends, TLC’s Home Made Simple, FamilyLife Today, and The 700 Club. She’s also the host of the Happy Home podcast and has written for Proverbs 31 Ministries and Girlfriends in God.
Before becoming a speaker and author, Arlene served as a features reporter for The 700 Club and associate director for Turning Point with David Jeremiah. She and her husband James have been married 24 years, and have three children, Ethan, Noelle and Lucy.
Josette Chavez
Ministry Engagement Coordinator
Josette Chavez serves as the Ministry Engagement Coordinator, where she fosters meaningful connections and collaborates with faith leaders to strengthen marriages across the nation. She is also an active contributor to the TANF Modernization Project.
In addition to her nonprofit work, Josette is a successful entrepreneur, managing operations for her own business. As a certified mental health coach, she is deeply committed to serving her local community, offering compassionate support through Celebrate Recovery programs.
A dedicated wife and mother, Josette has been happily married for over 15 years and is raising four wonderful children. Her passion for community, leadership, and family shines through in every endeavor she undertakes.
Carl Caton
Managing Director
Carl Caton is the Founder and President of the Marriage Initiative out of San Antonio, Texas. He is a board member of NARME (National Association of Relationship & Marriage Educators) and part of the Marriage Collective.
Dionna Sanchez
Director of Communications
Dionna Sanchez has dedicated 11 years to serving the Marriage Initiative in San Antonio, Texas, focusing on social media strategy, branding, messaging, reputation management, and communications. She hosts a bi-monthly mastermind group, offering insights on social media and communication strategies, and provides consulting to cities launching their own marriage initiatives.
Additionally, Dionna led an online ministry for moms for 17 years, has facilitated women’s Bible study groups, and brings a strong background in freelance writing and blogging. Her contributions have been featured in numerous publications, including regular contributions as a monthly columnist.
Eliseo Sanchez
Director of Operations
Eliseo has worked cumulatively for 22 years in the technology field before he joined the Marriage Initiative team in 2021. With his addition, he brings a strong sense of operations and processes to the organization.
Amy Morgan
Livestream Moderator
Amy Morgan has worked as the feature writer for the Marriage Initiative team for the past six years, interviewing more than 140 nationally known marriage leaders. She writes for other publications including ministry magazine sabeacon.com.
After earning a journalism degree from Texas Christian University, Amy worked in medical marketing and pharmaceutical sales, wrote a monthly column in San Antonio's Medical Gazette and was assistant editor of the newspaper at Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. She was recognized in 2015 as a PTA Texas Life Member and in 2017 with a Silver Presidential Volunteer Service Award for her volunteer service at Johnson High School.
More of Amy's articles and YouTube videos can be found at marriageresources.org.
Chuck Stetson
Co-Founder and Current Advisor
Chuck is one of the Founders of National Marriage Week USA. In 2009 Chuck Stetson helped launch the Let's Strengthen Marriage Campaign, working with dozens of organizations in the U.S. and many leaders in the marriage movement. He has led the Bible Literacy Project since 1999 and in 2017, the Stetson Family Office started Healthcare Impact Foundation, a 501(c)(3), to bring capital and management expertise to life science companies at all stages and to build and maintain an efficient life science eco-system.
Chuck has appeared on FOX News, CBS Sunday Morning and The Today Show. His work at Essentials in Education has been featured in numerous Associated Press articles, the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Newsweek and TIME Magazine.
Julia Dezelski
Advisor
Julia Dezelski is Associate Director for Marriage and Family Life at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. In her role, she assists the U.S. Catholic bishops in advancing the vocation to marriage and the mission of the family as the domestic church. She oversees ForYourMarriage.org, a website to help couples at all stages of life to understand and live God’s plan for happy, holy marriages.
She has spoken and written on family life, the call to motherhood, and the sanctity of life. Currently she serves as a consultant to the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life at the Vatican.
Mrs. Dezelski holds a Licentiate (S.T.L.) and a Doctorate (S.Th.D.) in Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome. She and her family live in the Washington, DC area.