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Leading Through Relationship Experience

Jack & Karen Baker

Leadership roles within Worldwide Marriage Encounter (WWME) at the World Council, National Secretariat, Section, and Local Areas are all selected through a prayerful, guided process. In the United States Secretariat, following selection, newly selected leaders of a Section or Local Area attend the Leading Through Relationship (LTR) training seminar The LTR weekend provides formation about WWME leadership values.

On June 11-13, 2004 a LTR weekend was facilitated by Fr. Mark Willenbring, Bob & Joy Hernandez and Rob & Sue Strouse for nineteen couples and five priests from across the United States. The LTR is scripturally based leadership training that adapts concepts from the book Seven Habits of Highly Effective People written by Stephen Covey. The sessions include a reminder that leadership within WWME is a calling by God to service. The LTR is both an experience and a workshop intended to provide insights, confidence, skills and direction to enhance leadership and help new leaders to inspire those couples and priests God has called to this ministry. New leaders hear that WWME is a true movement within the Catholic Church and our ministry is needed. The new leaders are reminded that the value of the WWME Mission to renew the church and change the world is not done by volunteers, but by prophets and those called to serve this ministry in many different ways.

Click here for a larger image (JPG, 95KB)
Fr. Mark Willenbring, Joy & Bob Hernandez, and Wesley P. Guin

Click here for a larger image (JPG, 95KB)
Fr. Mark Willenbring, Sue & Rob Strouse, and Wesley P. Guin

The LTR experience covers topics for effective leadership including:
- Be Proactive
- Begin with the End in Mind
- Put First Things First
- Seek First to Understand (and then to be understood)
- Think Win/Win
- Delegation
- Conflict Resolution

Leadership concepts are discussed and reinforced like “We Lead People, We manage the means or the methods used to achieve a purpose.” And “Leadership is doing the right thing, Management is doing things right.” The new leaders from across the United States who attend an LTR have an opportunity to discuss their hopes and dreams and begin to establish some goals for their term of leadership As with all good WWME events the LTR includes a healthy mix of presentations, dialogues and group sharing.

May God grant wisdom, patience and courage to all of our leaders as they strive to be good Shepherds in the ministry of Worldwide Marriage Encounter.

Click here for a printable page (PDF, 88KB)