According to the latest demographics, more than half the people living in Central Oregon are married. That still leaves a chunk potentially searching for a partner. Data shows 27% of the local population have never married; 13% are divorced and 5% are widowed. It’s a pretty equal split among the number of men and women living in the area. For those hoping for love, finding the right match can feel daunting.
“I learned quickly that matchmaking is not a great starting point for most people because a lot of people think they’re just not meeting the right people. And a lot of times they’re not really receptive to the right people,” says Amber Heath who started Soul Match Intentional Dating about two years ago. She initially launched a traditional matchmaking model but evolved into coaching after realizing many people are struggling with every detail from making conversation to being open minded.
“So I flipped it and said, ‘OK, coaching first. Nobody gets matchmaking until they go through what I call my relationship readiness series. That’s a series of coaching packages. It’s tiered, ranging from five weeks to 40 weeks. I get them in there and I really start unpacking,” she explains. “What are the assumptions that you are taking with you into a date that’s preventing you from asking a question that might blow that assumption out of the water and forming a real connection.”
Heath started her business after going through what she calls a toxic marriage that lasted six years. In her 40s and a private music teacher for most of her adult life, she was ready for a change.
Soul Match Intentional serves clients in Bend and Portland and has a variety of options, depending on the level of services desired.
“Everybody says it’s so hard to date in my city. It doesn’t matter what their city is.” Heath says people need to focus on having their essential needs met first, like housing, before worrying about higher needs such as long-lasting love. She blames technology for a breakdown of social skills. “People have lost a lot of soft skills and are less likely to speak to each other in public or even make eye contact in public. It’s become very, very difficult to meet people in real life.”
Heath offers a free discovery call to explain her services and the associated costs. Her coaching packages run anywhere from $1,500 to $3,000, depending on the length. Matchmaking is an additional cost. She does background checks and facilitates the first two dates between two people then has them exchange contact information if they want to continue.
For those who don’t want a deep dive into themselves, Heath offers a Loveline starting at $99 a month which includes one 50-minute Zoom session with her. She also has pre-recorded online courses with advice on dating and personal growth for under $100.
Heath also provides real time support, allowing clients to text her anytime with questions about dating. “I really like being a more accessible option…for people who are less clear about what it is that they need. It’s really coaching forward rather than matchmaking forward.” As an example, she says, “This is real time help, like ‘I’m in this situation, I don’t know what I should say. I’m going to text Amber.’… I do have my phone with me all the time and ready to answer people’s questions… I also have a group called the dating divas circle which is a free, online support group for women at any stage of the game… It’s just women who can talk freely with other women who are in the trenches with them.”
Matchmaking is in demand
Epiphany Match just celebrated its one-year anniversary in Bend and Portland in early January. The company, run by Jamie Doty and Crystal Boles, also offers different levels of service including matchmaking, dating relationship coaching and speed dating events.
“Basic membership is a date strategy session,” Boles explains. “They can take the information that they learn for their own dating journey and whatever app they’re choosing to use… We help build their dating profile. The actual boutique style matchmaking piece is full service six months. You get two matchmakers, and we only take 15 clients at a time.”
The cost for the premium service at Epiphany Match starts at $8,000. It includes a personality assessment to build a dating profile, examining a client’s relationship history to identify unsuccessful patterns, confidence-building, a photo shoot and creating a desired partner profile.
“We absolutely have people that hire us say, ‘I am tired. I’m busy. I’m successful. I don’t want people to see me on the app. I’m a widow. I’m looking for somebody very, very specific,” Boles says. “And then they hire us and we go and recruit for that person. We go find the person. So, we actually pound the pavement. We’re boots on the ground out there looking for that person.”
Once they find someone, Boles and Doty do an extensive background check before introducing the potential match to their client. Most of Epiphany’s clients are divorced, ranging in age from 26 to 82 years of age, with a fairly even split of men and women.
“The majority of them are professionals, and they want to hire another professional to outsource the searching for them so that they can focus on their job, their career, their business, whatever it is, and then we do the dating portion for them,” Doty explains.
For those not seeking an extensive service, Epiphany hosts several speed-dating events at local bars. Participants pre-register for a fee of around $10.
“At most, we do 15 rounds [of speed dating], which is exhausting. It’s a lot, but it’s a lot of fun. And somebody gets 15 dates in one night when they attend one of those big nights,” Boles explains. “The rounds are between five and seven minutes, depending on how many people attend. And at the end of the night, we email out the matches, and then they can message each other via email.”
Dating in the modern world can mean sorting through fake AI profiles on a dating app or wasting time with people who aren’t serious about a committed relationship.
Making the best decisions about love
“I get people who have been widowed. I get people who are divorced. I get people who have never been married. I get people who have gone on a 101st date. I get people who haven’t dated in 30 years,” says Heath with Soul Match. “I’m amazed that people from every situation, wherever they are in their life are curious about how they can do this thing better. Because choosing a partner and learning how to build a relationship with that partner is maybe the most important decision that they’re ever going to make. And I love being able to help people make a good decision about that.”
“When our client comes to us, they’re essentially telling us that they don’t want to do this dating. They don’t want to be lonely anymore,” Doty says. “They want us to help them match them with someone, saving time and energy.”
“I was having a conversation at my speed dating event last night,” Boles says. “And I have a couple that met, that are super in love, at one of our speed datings. And it brings so much joy to know, because I love love, right? We love love, and it’s so amazing when people get engaged and they get married, and we’re like, that would not have happened if we would not have introduced them.”
Ephiphany Match
ephiphanymatch.com
Soul Match Intentional Dating
https://soulmatchintentionaldating.com/
This article appears in the Source February 5, 2026.
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