Contact: Dick & Diane Baumbach, Worldwide Marriage Encounter, 321-544-3440, dickanddiane66@bellsouth.net

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., Jan. 24, 2012 /Christian Newswire/ -- Worldwide Marriage Encounter, the original faith based marriage enrichment program in the United States, announces the winner of the Longest Married Couple Project to be Wibur & Theresa Faiss of Las Vegas, NV.  They have been married 78 years as of Feb. 11, 2012. 

The state winners as a result of the project will be announced on Monday, Jan. 30, 2012.  There were 256 nominations received from 47 states.

"What a privilege and honor it is to recognize Wilbur & Theresa Faiss for their commitment to marriage," said Scott and Karen Seaborn, the United States Ecclesial Team for WWME. "We look forward to personally recognizing them on Feb. 11th in their hometown of Las Vegas," they added.  The Seaborns serve with Fr. Tom Griffith, SVD, as the U.S. leadership for the marriage enrichment movement.

The Faiss' were married April 14, 1933.  They met at a roller skating rink in Centralia, IL in 1930. Mr. Faiss said it was "love at first sight."

The Nevada couple achieved the honor of being the Longest Married Couple based on the over 250 nominations submitted to Worldwide Marriage Encounter beginning in October of last year. 

Worldwide Marriage Encounter created this project to highlight marriage in America and to show young couples that marriage really can go the distance.  "What an inspiration Mr. & Mrs. Faiss are to all of us.  They made a commitment to each other 78 years ago and they have kept that commitment over these many years.  They truly are a sign of hope to us all," the Seaborns said.

The national winners have three children, six grandchildren, five great grandchildren and four great great grandchildren. 

The presentation of gifts and acknowledgments to the Faiss' will be made at 10 am  Feb. 11th at the Wilbur & Theresa Faiss Middle School, which is named in honor of them, and is located in Las Vegas. 

The state winners will also be presented their certificates and recognitions by Worldwide Marriage Encounter couples, during Valentine's week. 

Worldwide Marriage Encounter has been offering weekend experiences for over 43 years and is considered the original faith-based marriage enrichment program.  The programs are continually updated to keep abreast of changes in society, and WWME now offers evening and half-day programs that are presented at parishes and other church facilities.  The weekend program, traditionally presented as an overnight experience at a hotel or retreat center, can also be presented at the parish where the couples return to their homes in the evenings.   WWME has a presence in over 90 countries, which makes it the largest pro-marriage movement in the world.  In North America, the WWME programs are presented in English, Spanish, French, and Korean languages.

Worldwide Marriage Encounter offers married couples the opportunity to spend time together away from the busyness of the world to focus on each other.  It offers tools for building and maintaining a strong, Christian marriage in today's world.  To learn more about the Worldwide Marriage Encounter weekends online, go to wwme.org, or you can call 1-800-795-LOVE (English) and 1-800-599-AMOR (Spanish), or contact the WWME Office at (909) 863-9963.