COLORADO SPRINGS. Milton and Lucille Franklin met on a blind date almost 74 years ago in Louisiana. Lucille was 19 and Milton was 22 and in the Air Force when they married on August 16, 1952, at St. Peter Claver Catholic Church in New Orleans. 

On Dec. 12, 2025, the Franklins were honored by the Colorado Marriage Encounter Community as the state’s Longest Married Couple for 2025.
Tom and Molly Johnson, Colorado leaders of Marriage Encounter, presented the Franklins with a certificate of recognition and flowers at Holy Apostles’ Mary’s House.

During this Jubilee Year of Hope, the Church calls for all of us to be “tangible signs of hope for those of our brothers and sisters who experience hardships of any kind” (Spes Non Confundit, 10). Finding reasons for hope and sharing that hope with others is part of our vocation as Christians. Perhaps one of the greatest areas where the hope of Jesus Christ is needed here in the United States is mental health.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and this year’s mental health awareness theme is “From Awareness to Action.” Many Catholic dioceses across the United States are taking action to support the mental health of their parishioners.

COLORADO SPRINGS. April 20-26 is National Infertility Awareness Week. Couples carrying the cross of infertility are in our families, among our friends, and in our pews. They need to know that they have many gifts to bring to our parish, that their marriages are life-giving in many beautiful ways, and that God has not abandoned them — and neither have we. For more resources and support, visit www.diocs.org/Offices/The-Office-of-Marriage-and-Family-Life/Marriage-and-Family-Healing or email cos.infertility@gmail.com.

COLORADO SPRINGS. The Diocese of Colorado Springs and Divine Mercy University are collaborating on a research project to explore how spiritual practices support each spouse’s well-being. Married couples who are attending a parish in the diocese are asked to visit https://divinemercyuw.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ekqUmZ3mtAJGvrM to complete the survey. For more information, contact Deacon Mike McGrady at mmcgrady@diocs.org or 719-866-6293.