09/19/2023
Dear Branches Community,
After many, many months of prayer and discernment, Eileen and I have decided to step down from leading the Branches Young Adult Events. This decision was not made lightly and is was the clear sense of peace from God that this is the best move for our family.
We truly loved the mission of the Branches, and still see there is a great need for authentic, fun events in our communities where Catholic young adults can meet and form friendships. We hope that through our events you met people and got involved in all of the wonderful things happening in Bismarck-Mandan. Please continue investing in these relationships and inviting others to join you! Believe us, we know it can be hard to reach out! But if our experience with the Branches has taught us anything, it is that simply asking and inviting someone to join you in whatever it is you love to do can have an incredible impact.
At this time, there are no future Branches events planned. However, stay tuned to our page and your email in case the diocese decides to put on more events in the future. In the meantime, if you or someone you know is interested in leading Branches Young Adult events, please reach out to Neil and he can assist you as he has so generously did for us. Eileen and I also are willing to share any of our materials, lists, and experience!
There are so many people to thank, but there are a few specifically to whom we owe a tremendous amount of thanks. Thank you to Father Ehli and the good priests of the Cathedral for hosting us at their house for the last two years. It's a big sacrifice to give up your house to 60 young adults, and we always appreciate it! Thank you Neil Albaña and Ben Ottemoeller with the diocese for working to make sure we had the resources we needed to put on the events. Thank you to our amazing Core Team for sacrificing your time, talent, and treasures. Please continue to pray for our wonderful diocese!
Love,
Jake and Eileen Markel
