I sentenced her to my heart

When and how did you meet?
Pamela: Ah, love is a natural instinct and we had a crush on each other. George used to park his Red Cross motorcycle at my workplace after work. He would cross over to say hi. He was smart, gentle and disciplined. After a month or two he proposed that we have a drink at Napita.

What was your reaction?
Pamela: At first, I was hesitant but the third time he mustered courage and that is when he asked for my hand in marriage. I carried out investigations, vetted his close friends and sought my workmates’ opinion.

What attracted you to each other?
George: Pamela is a cute police officer, receptive and well-brought up Itesot. Looking at her dress code for a month, her humility and respect for everyone including suspects, I vowed to “arrest, charge, prosecute and sentence her to my heart”.

What was your budget and how did you raise the funds?
George: It was a modest budget of Shs10m which later increased to Shs15m from personal savings, friends contributions and offers.

What was the most expensive item?
George: The most expensive item was food and reception. The gown was for lasting impressions for the once in a lifetime affair because one cannot redo the wedding.

Did you involve a wedding planner?
Pamela: At first we contacted a wedding planner but when he came up with an exorbitant budget, we switched to experienced local party organisers and friends to put our idea of what the wedding should look like and how much it will cost. They did pretty well knowing the tastes of the Basoga and Iteso, the police force and civilian society.

What were you doing on the eve of your wedding?
George: Making calls to ensure everything was in place.
Pamela: We kept talking about how the function would be, the guests especially the Speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga and Kamuli LCV Salaamu Musumba.

What was your colour theme?
George: Pink and orange because they are vibrant and chic.

Were you disappointed in any way during the wedding?
Pamela: No, only surprises like when Salaamu Musumba arrived. We were overjoyed. Also, the speaker kept saying we should keep up the Teso smile for her Musoga son. Can you imagine a whole Speaker calling and saying “My daughter we are ready for you in Busoga keep the smile only for him.”

What did you enjoy the most on that day?
George: St Peter’s Church Kasokoso choir sang songs which cautioned us against rumours which ruin marriages. I got a close-up of the cathedral architecture. It looked heavenly.
Pamela: Dad marching me to church and giving me away for good. I have never seen him so excited, smiling and loving like this day. having our parents witness our marriage. It was reassuring as we swore to stay together for life.

What was going through your mind during the wedding ceremony?
Pamela: It felt like, so we are finally one. When we looked at the two sons Jesse and Joshua who were part of the entourage, we looked at each other George whispered you see the boys making it for us and I gave him a wicked smile and said darling they need a sister.

Did you go for premarital counselling and what did you learn from it?
Pamela: Marriage counselling was the game changer in our marriage lives. Bishop Naimanhye and wife are accredited marriage counsellors and could do better at the Police child and family unit section. The counseling has made us closer, better and caring just through small things in life.

Did you think going for a honeymoon is vital?
George: Honeymoon was the culmination of our love life and renewal of our commitment to each other. We had enough time off work to enjoy ourselves, make reflections and was like we were just beginning to date again

What is your advice to those planning to wed?
Pamela: With what we went though we would like to advise couples to cement and concretise their relationships with a perfect deserving wedding.
George: Make the wedding simple and within your means because it is about the two of you and it builds respect, responsibility and resource control

Where did you shop for your attire?
We bought our attire from Equatorial Hotel mall

How much did you spend on the wedding?
George: We had intended to spend little but when we contacted a wedding planner he gave us a hefty budget of Shs 50m. we almost called off the wedding but contacted friends and held a wedding meeting by open invitation where we sat at Country Club and came up with a modest budget of Shs10m.
Pamela: Along the way as people got to know about the wedding and came in, we raised more funds and put in more items such as the band, artistes and an offer for an exclusive honeymoon, pushing it to Shs15m.

Where did you buy your wedding rings from?
George: We bought our rings from JIT Jewellers at Grand Imperial Hotel, Kampala.

Did you have any debts after the wedding?
George: It is unbelievable that our wedding was well-attended and perfectly organised. At the end of it all it was big relief that we had no unsettled business except sending appreciation to the people for their immense support.

The unique thing about this was...
George: After the honeymoon, the chairman organising committee had a surprise package for us saying they had saved a Shs1 million off service providers who also gave back small contribution on down payments saying we had taken them big guests and customers placing orders for their services so we had marketed them.
Pamela (interjects): To all guests, organisers thank you so much for making our day memorable, perfect, satisfactory in return we shall make our marriage last like your trust in us and never let you down.

wedding planner : compiled by Sam Caleb Opio

Congratulations

Salaamu Musumba attended the event and ensured to congratulate the bride. What a way for the distinguished guests to stand out.

Jewellery

Pamela looked stunning in her set of matching accessories. Floral shaped jewels complemented her dress and befitted the occasion.

First dance

At a wedding this is one moment every couple looks forward to. When you have to open the dance floor as newly weds, it always looks good to have the couple go first.

Bridesmaids
The bridesmaids were four assistant superintendents of police, Pamela’s cousins and friends.

Decor
Sarah Ntende, the proprietor of Lasting Memories Jinja blended white and yellow with canopy lights to make the ambience serene.

Cake
Pamela Gutoi, from Kampala made the chocolate and and fruit-flavoured cake.

The details
Date: December 12, 2015
Groom: George Dhenga
Bride: Pamela Ajilong
Church: All Saints Church, Iganga
Reception: Skeyz Gardens Iganga
Guests: 650