FriendFinder: Congratulations on your engagement to the man you met on FriendFinder! In your success story it says that you were left home alone with 2 children. What made you decide to try FriendFinder?

JOANNE232: I was very depressed after the father of my children left me for another woman; it made me feel like I wasn’t wanted anymore. I originally went onto FF to just find people to talk to so that I didn’t feel so alone. I tried several friend meeting services other than ff on the internet, although I didn’t seem to get as much response as FF. My main purpose was to simply meet new people; I was not expecting to meet my future husband.

FriendFinder: We noticed that you built a network while you were looking for friends. Do you think networking is better than just browsing, emailing and waiting? How hard or easy is it to build a network? How big was your network?

JOANNE232: I didn’t find it very hard to build a network of friends, although it was hard to keep in touch with them. Most of them would write a few times, and then disappear after that. Although I made a lot of friends, I found it better to actually go into the chat room and talk to people, and I made a lot of friends in there. I have 38 friends in my FF network, pretty big!

FriendFinder: Could you tell us about the friends you met on FF before finding your partner?

JOANNE232: I did get to know a few people on FF, males and females; and I chatted with them a lot in the chat room sites. They kept me company when I was down, and we had some good lol’s too.

FriendFinder: So somehow you noticed your fiancé through your network. How did that come about?

JOANNE232: Apparently he was sent my picture through the FF cupid match e-mail, and he wrote me a message asking to get to know me more. I liked his profile and he sounded really nice so I responded.

FriendFinder: What let you know you might like to meet this man?

JOANNE232: My original plan was not really to meet anyone from FF, I was just imagining talking in the chat room and sending e-mails; so meeting my fiancé’ in person was the last thing on my mind when we first met on FF.

FriendFinder: Who contacted who first?

JOANNE232: He contacted me first, which was kind of cute.

FriendFinder: How long did you email before you decided to make the phone call?

JOANNE232: We were emailing for around 2 months when I decided to give him my mobile number so that we could actually talk in person. He was shocked, but he told me that he would ring me that night. He rang me on time, and we were so nervous. But it went so well, that we kept on doing it. Eventually the emails died down and the phone rang more and more.

FriendFinder: When it came time to meet him were you a little nervous? Had you met any other on FF people in person before meeting your fiancé?

JOANNE232: I was very nervous, but he told me at the time that he was too, so that helped me a little. I had been told by people that if I’m going to meet someone from the internet in person, then it should be in a public place. So we met at the local cinemas, we watched "Arthur”, then we went for a cuppa and had a nice talk. I had never met anyone else from FF, there was not really anyone that interested me as much as him.

FriendFinder: You said that on your first date, you immediately responded to him. Could you tell us more about how that first meeting went?

JOANNE232: He just seemed to be such a sincere, and romantic guy. My ex hardly ever paid for me even when we first started dating, so it was nice to have my fiancé pay for me. Also he seemed so ok with the fact that I have kids. He doesn’t have kids, and I always had a fear that I wouldn’t be wanted because I had children. I showed him pictures of them, and he said that they were cute.

FriendFinder: What are the hardest things about trying to date when you’re a single mom?

JOANNE232: I have the children with me 99% of the time, which scares off single blokes. I didn’t have the time to go out and meet new people, and I found it hard to have the courage to talk to new people. That’s where FF was a big help. It wasn’t as nerve-racking when meeting people.

FriendFinder: You have said, "I would love to see more women realize the opportunities they have in their own home to meet new people." What would you like to say to other women with children about these opportunities? (or How do you think women can use FF to overcome the limitations of having to stay home with children?)

JOANNE232: Internet dating has been given such a bad name over the last few years, and people don’t understand the benefits of it. There are precautions to take when you are meeting someone for the first time that you have only been emailing to, and don’t give out too much personal information before you really get to know them. However, it makes meeting the right person easier for people that are confined to the house due to children or even being simply too shy. Give it a go, you may or may not meet Mr.-- or Miss -- Right, but you will certainly feel better about yourself with the new people you meet.
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Single moms will also be happy to know that not only did Joanne find a wonderful partner, but you found someone who loves your children too.
Congratulations Joanne232, and good luck to you both in your future together!
The message? Follow up on those cupid reports!