I fell in love with his voice on radio

While Jurvass Akwiine, a pastor, remembers connecting with Alex Simbwa, a manager at Dream Television, through a phone call to a radio station, he says they were introduced by a mutual friend. At the time, Jurvass was about to finish her studies while Alex had just graduated.

“One day I was listening to radio and kept changing from one station to another. Many were playing boring music but when I finally found one that was playing my kind of music, I started listening. When the presenter finally spoke, I was smitten. Since it was my birthday, I called in and requested for a song which was immediately played.

Several months later, a friend came to visit me with Alex as his plus one. This day was the beginning of our love affair and 20 years later, here we are,” Jurvass says

She adds that what attracted her most to Alex was his  love for God and the passion with which he preached the word of God. She adds that with time she also realised that Alex was kind and loved helping those in need. In addition, they both loved listening to music and watching football. For Alex, it was not only Jurvass’s striking beauty and her heart of gold that drew him to her, she also had a positive outlook on life and loved every person genuinely.

Proposal

“Alex invited me out for lunch and after enjoying a sumptuous meal and talking about what we wanted out of the relationship, he got down on one knee and proposed,” Jurvass recalls.

Although Alex was nervous that somehow Jurvass had noticed what he was about to do, she had not and she was genuinely surprised by his proposal. She did not expect it because to her, they were still getting to know each other better.

When they talked further, Alex calmed her nerves by telling her he was ready to make her his wife, thus the proposal.

Marriage

The couple’s kuhingira (give away) ceremony was held on May 15, 2003 while their wedding, which was officiated by the late Rev Steven Gerenga and Michael David Kyazze took place on May 17, 2003 at St Francis Chapel in Makerere, Kampala. Thereafter, the newlyweds held a reception for 350 guests at  the Post Office gardens in Nakawa, Kampala.

So far

Just as it is always said about the first year of marriage being the honeymoon, Alex says their first year together was blissful. They easily adjusted and accepted each other’s weaknesses and saw these as a chance to learn and make their marriage stronger.  However, the couple agrees that good preparation through premarital counselling was a great stepping stone.

Because a marriage is between two people who have grown up in different homes with different values and beliefs, each marriage goes through different challenges. Jurvass says getting to know your spouse better without any judgements must be a daily practice and failure to do this will lead to arguments.

Raising children

The Simbwas have been blessed with three children. According to Jurvass, they have purposed to teach their children the value of relationships, with the most important ones being their relationship with God, parents, siblings, grandparents, and extended family members.

The couple adds that because they are children, they owe their elders, pastors and those in places of authority respect and honour.

“We have taught them that love, compassion, relationships, integrity, and hard work are our family values and need to be maintained,” says Jurvass, adding that, “Christ must be reflected with other people.”

Their children have also been taught the value of prayer and have been encouraged to use their talents, skills and gifts to serve God as well as others.

“We have also taken them on a journey to discover who they are, their purpose on earth and how they ought to fulfill what they were created for. We have also taught them the importance of hygiene and staying in good health.

We have told them to always take care of their bodies, eat well and exercise,” Jurvass says, adding that they also always go out and have fun as a family.

Alex says the scripture (prov:226) commands us to train up children in the way they should grow and when they go they will not depart from it. He says this is their parental obligation and mandate and that is what they are doing accompanied by prayer.

What has kept you going as a couple?

Understanding who we are,  each other’s needs and intentionally fulfilling them, not criticising each other’s differences, relying on each other’s strengths so that the weaknesses do not take centre stage and complementing one another have been their main pillars.

They also do not underestimate the power of prayer and because they always take their troubles to God, he guides and shows them the right way to go about an issue.