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Mark Wahlberg Reveals How His Devotion to Faith and Love Have Paved the Way to Success
Mark Wahlberg is a proud practicing Catholic and credits his faith with the success he’s had in both his professional and personal life.
“All success that I’ve had in my life is accredited to my faith,” the actor exclusively told Life & Style at the opening of his new restaurant Flecha by Mark Wahlberg in Huntington Beach, California on June 8. “There’s so much divide right now. The thing that’s gonna bring people together is love.”
At the Mexican-American eatery’s grand opening, Mark brought in Bishop Kevin W. Vann to bless the restaurant. “We’re trying to get people to reconnect with their faith, especially after COVID and stuff,” he added. “There’s a lot going on that’s bringing [a] divide between people, so we’re trying to bring people together.”
The Father Stu star also dished on his marriage to Rhea Durham, whom he married in 2009 after eight years together. “We are partners in every facet of life,” Mark gushed. “The amount of support that I have to be able to go off and do what I need to do and her holding it down and [me] being there for her. Being in a marriage is about being together and supporting each other through everything. We’ve been through a lot and we just, you know, we realized very early on.”
He also circled back to his faith once again, adding, “[We] got married in a church. That’s a very important thing for us in becoming one and being partners. We’ve been very fortunate.”
Mark and Rhea share kids Ella, 20, Michael, 18, Brendan, 15, and Grace, 14. When it comes to advice he’d give his eldest daughter about dating, the restaurant owner admitted, “She wouldn’t listen to me anyway. The only thing I can do is be an example of how me and her mom are together and hopefully that will resonate with all of our children.”
Although Mark previously revealed in 2022 that he was “working out” with Ella’s boyfriend at the time, he confirmed that the couple was no longer together. “He was a nice boy,” Mark admitted. “I mean, I was hoping the first boyfriend was gonna be the one that would last forever. It was wishful thinking.”
As for his newest restaurant venture, Mark explained, “I actually met a wonderful gentleman named Randy Sharp who was running, I think, 11 different concepts, all in the high-end Mexican space. And we partnered up with Flecha Azul tequila. And then I started talking to him and I realized he is the guy that I needed to hire away from his current job to come and run Wahlburgers and build our future restaurant concepts. So this is our first venture together with Flecha.”
When it comes to the menu, Mark said “everything” is delicious. “That taco I just had was amazing,” he shared. “Lobster enchiladas. I mean, it’s a very extensive menu. Come for brunch. Come bring your family, come have a cocktail. We want people to experience some wonderful food, have a lot of fun and enjoy themselves.”
