Good Hearts Meet
Reclaiming the Milestones
of Marriage and Family
The problem
The U.S. fertility rate hit a record low of 1.6 in 2024 — well below the 2.1 needed for population replacement. One in four 40-year-olds has never married, up from one in five just over a decade ago. Seventy-one percent of the global population now lives in countries below replacement-level fertility.
The consequences are measurable across health, wealth, and wellbeing. Stably married individuals approaching retirement hold nearly four times the assets of their never-married or divorced peers. Unmarried individuals show higher rates of depressive symptoms across every country studied. Couples who cohabitate, break up, and cohabitate with new partners negatively impact their finances with each arrangement. The costs compound — financially, physically, and socially — over a lifetime.
Our mission
Good Hearts Meet is committed to restoring marriage-minded values through data, education, and community-based programming.
We counsel marriage-minded singles, partner with churches and ministries, and are launching a multi-disciplinary research initiative with partners in psychology, sociology, economics, statistics, and AI. Our goal is not only to help meet individual needs, but to equip the next generation to futureproof their family planning.
What we do
A rigorous initiative based on rare data concerning the root causes of marriage decline, with findings that have serious implications for policy and public discourse.
A relationship and family planning curriculum designed to sit alongside career and financial education — giving young people the full picture while they still have choices, not costly defaults.
Married couples speak into the tangible ways marriage has impacted their careers, personal development, and finances. Inspiration for singles who want to know what really lies behind the veil.
Workshops, support groups, events, and counseling for marriage-minded adults navigating an increasingly difficult landscape.
About Helen
Helen Asuncion is a veteran educator and alternative learning specialist. Through her work helping students and families in crisis in Southern California, Helen pioneered holistic wraparound counseling methods to help primarily high-achievers suffering from burnout and students categorized as ADHD. Over two decades of immersion in this space give Helen an advantage in deciphering the structural forces driving today's marriage and family crisis.
Since founding Good Hearts Meet in 2020, she has counseled singles across the country, conducted research within churches and communities, and built a growing network of professional and academic partners. Her current focus is effecting change at the policy level to ensure that the next generation is equipped to make family planning decisions while they still have real choices.
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