In mid-January in Chicago, Ill., Friends Couple Enrichment (FCE) held its annual in-person meeting for leaders. The group worked on planning for the facilitation of upcoming couples’ workshops in various communities, including at Pendle Hill study center in Wallingford, Pa., and at the Friends General Conference (FGC) summer Gathering to be held in Radford, Va. (it was later announced to be an online-only event). The group also created a new training for prospective leader couples, much of which is online and self-directed to allow for greater flexibility.
When the COVID-19 pandemic arrived in North America in March, several in-person couples’ events were canceled. The FGC Gathering workshop became shortened and virtual, with some of the participants meeting with the leader couple online multiple times after the Gathering.
FCE has continued using video conferencing to strengthen the leader couple community and the wider community. One leader couple has introduced a monthly drop-in dialogue session open to all past participants of FCE events. FCE continues to view couple dialogue as “a transformative practice that makes love more visible.”
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