He confiscated her sweater to keep seeing her

The couple greet businessman Gordon Wavamunno at a social function .

What you need to know:

  • Navigating differences. Sophie points out that owing to the fact that each individual comes from a different background, they are likely to bring different views and mannerisms to the relationship. So for a relationship to work, both parties must be patient with each other.

Sam Gombya is best described as a humble, down-to-earth, hardworking man who fancies people who share the same character traits. He is the deputy mayor of Kampala Central Division a journalist, musician and counsellor. But most importantly, he is a husband to Sophie Gombya and father to their five Children. He tells of how he met Sophie.

“Interestingly, my wife and I went to the same primary school although it was much later in life that we connected,” Sam intimates.

The two met at Pride Theatre where Sophie used to frequent as Sam’s musical fan. They went on to become friends. With these interactions, Sam grew fond of her. In her, he saw a young, humble, slender jaunty, beautiful and bold gem.

“I liked her for her size and the way she talked to me. It took me two years to convince her to get into a committed relationship with me,” he recounts.

From friends to lovers
Sophie says it started out with being a fan, then friendship which bred love.

“He became my friend, partner and then my husband and father of our children. He is very thoughtful. The first questions he asked me were, ‘why are you here? Are your parents aware you are here?’ He was keen to find out why I loved music. I told him and his friend, Joseph Mulinde, my story,” Sophie recalls.

Sophie and Sam at an introduction ceremony. The two were brought together by their passion for music and theatre . Courtesy Photos


Falling in love
At the time, Sophie was the entertainment prefect at Kibibi Secondary School. She invited Sam and his friends to perform at her school.

“When they came around, they found a warm and welcoming, playful girl. From that point, we never stop seeing each other,” Sophie says.

Hanging onto a sweater
Sophie remembers visiting Sam for the first time at his family’s home in Lubaga. They chatted and when it got late, he escorted her home. However, before parting ways, he asked for her sweater.

That was his bait to keep seeing her. She would visit him to ask for the sweater and he kept asking to keep it.

“At the time, when you loved someone, you confiscated something from them. I took her sweater and she asked to have it back, saying that her father would beat her so I asked her to come back to my house to get it.

It was during these visits that he would pour his heart out to her convincing her to become his better half. He held onto the sweater until his words began to yield fruit.

Dating
“I remember I once needed to take her out so one evening when I had a performance in Ndeeba, I asked her to come along. I was broke, but I had to keep her around, so I bought her sodas.
Moving in
After a while, she came home. My mattress was less than two inches but she did not mind. She accepted to live with me. After a short while, she got pregnant. At the time, I had just joined Makerere University and I did not have much so when it was time for the baby to be born, my brother saved the day by clearing the hospital bills,” he recalls.

Making it official
They went on to have a second child and thankfully his financial status had improved by then so they decided to formalise their relationship. Her parents demanded that he converts to Islam, something he was not ready to adhere to. He convinced his then girlfriend to back him up.

“Eventually, Sophie and I went ahead with our plans. Her father did not attend the introduction and church service.