What’s the relationship between Better Marriages and Close Companions? We’re one big happy family with a common mission!
Our legal name, the name under which we were founded as a 501(c)(3), is Association for Couples in Marriage Enrichment (ACME).
In 2009, the Board of Directors created a “doing business as” – DBA) of Better Marriages. They thought it more readily expressed who we are as well as being a lot easier to say! For branding purposes, it also matched the web address we’d been using for years: bettermarriages.org. But, Better Marriages is still Association for Couples in Marriage Enrichment.
In 2019, the Board of Directors created an additional DBA of Close Companions. We believed that using the word “marriage” in our name turned some couples away – couples who were in committed relationships, but expressing them as civil unions, cohabitations, or other non-traditional relationships. We know that the concepts and principles established by David and Vera Mace are helpful for all couples in committed relationships whether or not they have a marriage license. But, Close Companions is still Association for Couples in Marriage Enrichment.
Better Marriages and Close Companions were both chosen as branding opportunities. Better Marriages is the branding for our membership organization comprised of local, state, and regional Chapters, Leader Couples, events, and 49 years worth of resources. Close Companions is the branding for our new on-line educational courses for couples and newly-developed or revised resources.
By the way, we’re sure you recognize that Close Companions is the title of the book written by Dr. David Mace and is recognized as the original “Marriage Enrichment Handbook.”
In summary, ACME, Better Marriages, and Close Companions all exist to reach couples and to introduce them to and support them with the marriage enrichment resources we know work!
www.closecompanions.org/relationship-courses
