Metro area – With flowers, chocolates and jewelry advertisements at every turn, it’s not hard to see what society promotes as important in mid-February when it comes to love and relationships.

But for couples committed to one another in holy matrimony, there’s always World Marriage Day to remind them that marriage is, well, holy.

“You have to work on your marriage,” says Linda Spranger, a St. Anastasia parishioner who with her husband, Jay, help conduct programs for World Wide Marriage Encounter in the Detroit area. “At World Marriage Day, we come together as a ministry of people working to build the sacrament of marriage and to allow people to see what opportunities are out there.”

Like many couples who are or have been involved in marriage-strengthening ministries in the Archdiocese of Detroit, the Sprangers celebrate World Marriage Day on the second Sunday in February, so chosen for its proximity to the over commercialized St. Valentine’s Day.

An annual local event marks the occasion – dinner, dancing and a presentation at the San Marino Club in Troy – by bringing together those who have been part of National Marriage Encounter, World Wide Marriage Encounter, Retrouvaille, Encuentro Matrimonial Mundial and BLD Detroit Covenant Community. This year, the Feb. 13 event will feature a talk by Dr. Tim and Karen Hogan, who will share with attendees three fun and proven ways to strengthen their marriages.

The event will be emceed by popular Catholic radio host Teresa Tomeo of WDEO (990 AM), and also will include a blessing for marriages from St. Anastasia pastor Fr. J.J. Mech.

While you may not find World Marriage Day greeting cards while browsing your local gift shop, the sentiment participants may discover while in observance of the sanctity of marriage may prove to last longer than a bouquet of flowers ever could.

“We take care of things that are of value to us in life,” says Linda Spranger. “We tune up our cars to help them run better; we maintain our homes; in certain jobs we need to keep up in our field, so we take classes. This is something my husband and I do to feed our marriage, to keep it in tune… It’s important to continue to feed your relationship.”

For more information on World Marriage Day or to register for the Feb. 13 event at the San Marino Club in Troy, visit www.worldmarriageday.org.