 By Kermit Rowe ECC Relationship Coach Katana Wolfcomer and Brendan Myers were an engaged couple like all other engaged couples… in love and planning for a lifetime of happiness together. But they also knew they still had challenging issues of spotty communication and wavering trust, complicated by unresolved grief and childhood dysfunction, and it drove them to seek a better way before committing their lives to each other.
They found Encompass Connection Center’s foundational RINGS program, which is focused on strengthening relationship skills through practicing the truths of good communication. I, along with dozens of Clark County pastors, signed an Encompass-inspired pledge about two decades ago that I wouldn’t marry a couple unless they had some premarital counseling. AI-generated statistics support this claim with proven data that explain why: Studies show that completing premarital counseling reduces divorce rates by 31%, with couples reporting a 30% higher marital success rate. That translates into improved communication, stronger conflict resolution skills, and greater emotional well-being and satisfaction within their relationship. Katana and Brendan have even more practical and experiential reasons why:
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 By Abby Glaser Encompass Community Advocate Most people who know Encompass are familiar with the work we do with couples--that’s certainly one of our core missions! But many people don’t realize that we also work extensively with individuals, meeting them right where they are in life.
One of the programs closest to my heart is a relationship class I’ve been honored to teach at McKinley Hall’s women’s residential program for more than six years. If you’re not familiar with McKinley Hall, they’re an incredible local resource offering hope and healing to those affected by substance use disorders (SUD), empowering people to build healthy, fulfilling lives. The need is great. Across the U.S., rates of substance use disorder among women continue to rise. Women with SUD often carry an even heavier burden: they are far more likely to have experienced physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. That history of trauma can increase the risk of PTSD, which is 1.4 times more likely to co-occur with addiction. Recovery, then, is about so much more than just getting sober--it’s about untangling years of hurt and learning how to build safe, supportive, loving relationships.  By Dr. David Marine Mabry Encompass Executive Director September is an important month for Encompass Connection Center. For us, it’s not only the start of a new season of programming but also the close of our fiscal year. This makes it a natural time to reflect, celebrate, and look forward. It is also when we invite our friends and partners—people like you—to join us in ensuring that stories of transformation continue to unfold in the months ahead.
Throughout this month, we will be sharing Stories of Impact. These are not abstract statistics or program overviews, but the real-life journeys of couples, parents, and individuals whose lives have been touched by Encompass. Each story is a reminder of why we exist and how your support makes life-changing moments possible. Let me share one story that continues to inspire me.  By Ruthanna Powell Relationship Champion and Encompass Partner When I asked Chuck and Gale Poole how they’ve managed to stay married for 50 years, Chuck laughed and said, “When the kids were home and I was upset, I could talk to them. After they left, I talked to the dog. Then the dog died—and we had to learn to communicate!”
That bit of humor sums up a lot about Chuck and Gale. Their relationship is real, resilient, and rooted in faith. As they look back on their golden anniversary, they shared what has carried them through five decades of marriage.  By Cindee Johnson Relationship Champion and Encompass Partner Our wedding was just a couple of months away. I was a divorced, single mom of two young children. Dave had never been married and had no children of his own. My kids bonded so well with him, and he fully supported my commitment to keeping their relationship strong with their birth father.
One relaxing Friday evening in August 1989, while talking over dinner about our upcoming marriage, the subject of date nights came up. I wondered out loud, “Will we still do evenings like this once we’re married?” “Why, yes, we will.” And yes, we have. And yes, we still do--nearly 36 years later as empty nesters. At the time, we had no idea how meaningful that decision would become.  By Lavern and Ronda Nissley Team Nissley Coaching & Consulting A surge of sadness and loss went through me the first time I (Lavern) saw my Dad walking more slowly and hunched over. He had always been active and a rather fast walker. Now he looked like an old man. Fortunately, this image of Dad didn't catch us off guard since we had numerous discussions with Mom and Dad about this stage of life. But it still hit me to see such a vivid picture of irreversible aging.
In 2018, after months of Ronda visiting her parents weekly in London, Ohio (about 45 minutes from our home in Springfield), we arrived at the mutual decision to relocate them to Wooded Glen, a long-term care facility in Springfield. In 2019, we did the same for Lavern's parents, moving them from Arthur, Illinois, to a condo in Springfield. These decisions were fully processed with respective parents and siblings, with the idea that the two of us would take the lead in helping our parents navigate their twilight years. Only one of those four parents is still living. Lavern's Dad passed in November 2021, his Mom in March 2023, and Ronda's Mom in September 2023. Ronda's Dad is approaching his 95th birthday on August 17. So, how did this all work out? How were relationships affected? What did we learn about the initiative to care for our aging parents?  By Dr. David Marine Mabry Executive Director of Encompass Connection Center As we step into August, we’re exploring what it means to do family life through the stages—starting today with marriage in mid-life.
Marriage in the 40–65 range brings unique joys, challenges, and adjustments. Children may be leaving the house or growing more independent. Aging parents may need increasing support. Careers evolve or plateau. Our own bodies, dreams, and identities shift. And yet… something beautiful can happen here. Theresa and I have been married since 1993. We’ve weathered a lot together—raising kids, ministry transitions, career changes, personal growth seasons. What strikes me most as we live in this “mid-life” chapter is not how much we’ve changed… but how essential it is that we keep changing. The key isn’t resisting change. It’s embracing the person your spouse is becoming, and continuing to show up as the person you’re becoming too.  Bob Suver and Lavern Nissley share a moment at the Encompass Connection Center 20th Anniversary event in the Fall of 2024 By Dr. David Marine Mabry Executive Director, Encompass Connection Center When we talk about partnerships that make a lasting difference, we often look downstream—at the outcomes, the stories, the families restored. But to understand the impact of Encompass Connection Center and the Clark County Department of Job and Family Services (DJFS), we have to go upstream.
That’s where Bob Suver started. As the former Executive Director of DJFS, Bob saw firsthand the heartbreak and complexity of families in crisis. Too often, the interventions available were reactive—addressing symptoms but not causes. “I found the tools the community had to deal with family disintegration were insufficient,” he shared. “We had to do something different.”  By Theresa Mabry Encompass Director of Operations Some partnerships are born from a single moment. Others grow over time—formed through shared values, vision, and trust. Our relationship with Choosing Hope Adoptions is one of the latter. It's a story of convergence, collaboration, and commitment to strengthening families from the inside out.
 By Kermit Rowe Encompass Relationship Facilitator The latest statistics are sobering but point to a largely unrecognized and unaddressed problem plaguing American families for decades. Fatherless homes are a contributing factor to 63% of teen suicides, 71% of high school dropouts, 83% of children with significant behavior issues, 85% of youth in jails/detention, and 90% of homeless and runaway children.
Clearly, there is a fathering crisis in our country … and it didn’t crop up overnight. Worse yet, it is growing larger by the year. The goal of the ministry of Encompass Connection Center (and Marriage Resource Center before it, from 2004-2018) is “Family Trees Forever Changed.” That just can’t be done without critical contributions from a Dad in the home, which is why the ECC and Urban Light Ministries have been connected since our humble beginnings. |
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HostsDr. David Marine and Theresa Mabry are Co-Directors of Encompass since June 1, 2024. TOPICS
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Funding is provided by Clark County Job and Family Services, Charles L. Shor Foundation, Nehemiah Foundation, Springfield Foundation, Turner Foundation, and private donations and fees.
Program content is the sole responsibility of Encompass Connection Center and does not necessarily represent the views of the funders.
Encompass Connection Center services are provided to all eligible persons on a non-discriminatory basis. Encompass Connection Center complies with all applicable laws and regulations concerning discrimination does not discriminate on the basis of the potential participant's race, gender, gender orientation, age, disability or religion.
Registered 501(c)(3). EIN: 37-1485217
Program content is the sole responsibility of Encompass Connection Center and does not necessarily represent the views of the funders.
Encompass Connection Center services are provided to all eligible persons on a non-discriminatory basis. Encompass Connection Center complies with all applicable laws and regulations concerning discrimination does not discriminate on the basis of the potential participant's race, gender, gender orientation, age, disability or religion.
Registered 501(c)(3). EIN: 37-1485217