Golden hearts: The Kabangas 50-year love story

Sam Kabanga and his Wife of fifty years Jane Njeri Kabanga at their home in Kiambu County.[Benard Orwongo,Standard]

In a quiet, lush corner off Muhuri Road in Dagoretti lies a tale of timeless love. Here, amidst a flourishing garden of verdant flowers, herbs and bamboo, Sam and Jane Kabanga look back on their lives together, the joys and challenges in their 50-year marriage.

At the heart of their relationship are shared memories of two people whose lives were diametrically opposite. Sam ate life with a big spoon, a city boy who loved the finer things in life including a good dance.

Jane was the bright village girl brought up in strict Christian values, besides being educated at the equally strict Tumutumu Girls School in Nyeri. At home and in school, Jane had little time for distractions especially from the ever-disruptive village lads.

But the ever-charming Sam, then a salesperson with a Nairobi-based medical supplier, broke through Jane’s armour.

In their small paradise in Dagoretti that they have christened Sunline Gardens, the lovebirds took us through their half a century-odyssey.  

Sam and Jane’s story began in 1973 in Kagundui-ini, a quiet enclave deep in Murang’a. It was a chance encounter during one of Sam’s marketing forays into the region. The encounter seemed ordinary at first but set the stage for a series of events that would change the lives of the two forever.

“I saw her hair from behind and was charmed,” Sam says with a shy smile. “Not even the girls I had encountered in the city had such flowing and glowing natural hair.”

The girl who had (and still has) a passion for teaching and a heart full of dreams was walking home from a local school where she had just landed a teaching gig. She had no idea she was being watched. Sam told the driver to stop and “offer the girl a ride home”.

Jane could see right through Sam’s eyes. She did not suffer fools easily. “My home is just here, I can walk” she told Sam. Sam persisted.

“She took the offer and alighted 300 metres further down the road. I made arrangements to visit her the following week,” he says.

True to his word, Sam came visiting the following week. Jane offered generous servings of chapati and local stew (waru included) to Sam.

Is food not the way into a man’s heart? Jane was slowly ‘getting into the box’. She needed more coaxing, and Sam was there to prod her some more.

Maranga’s terrain is hilly and becomes a soggy quagmire during the rains. During one of those visits, Sam had to ride on top of those old ‘face-me’ matatus, not as a passenger inside the matatu but on the top luggage carrier, fighting for space with plastic jerrycans and gunny bags.

Nothing, not the distance, not the mud, not the dust could separate him from his heartthrob. “Kwa mwendwa hutiri irima (no hills are too steep when going to your lover’s place),” he told himself.

It was time to make the next move. Sam knew of several relaxation joints in town, top of these being Uhuru Park. He invited her to the city. He did not have to worry atakula fare. There was no way of sending mobile cash back then, and not from his monthly salary of Sh300!

At Uhuru Park, Sam was all dressed up in a suit and tie to impress the girl. She was immaculate too, but her hair, of course, stood out.

“The grounds were tranquil, and we did all the things young people would do in Uhuru Park,” recalls Sam.

Their first date in the city was filled with laughter and a connection neither could deny.

But he had other ideas up his sleeves. How would he make sure the girl stays overnight in the city? By taking her to a movie theatre, Cameo Cinema to be precise.

Simon Medicks, a Jewish settler, had created Cameo, the first theatre in East Africa along Kenyatta Avenue as a hangout spot for the elite. It was a fitting haunt for Sam and his bride to be.

“The plan worked, and I was on the road to becoming a husband,” says a beaming Sam. 

The couple was married in Murang’a on October 5, 1974.

Sam Kabanga and his Wife Jane Njeri During their wedding fifty years ago on October 5th 1974.[Benard Orwongo,Standard]

On the expansive foyer of their home in Dagoretti, Sam peruses through the wedding photos. It is not hard to see why he was irresistible. In one bridal party photo, Sam cuts the image of a charming young man with a full crop of hair, sharp, penetrating eyes and holding on to his new bride.

Years flew by, marked by parental duties. After the medical sales job, Sam ran a printing business where he interacted with some of Kenya’s notable personalities including former Kieni MP the late Munene Kairu; former Kangema MP and political heavyweight, Joseph Kamotho (who still owed Sam Sh10,500 from a campaign material printing job); and the late lawyer and Cabinet minister Mutula Kilonzo.

“Mutula had just come back from the law school in Dar es Salaam, and I helped him get an office next to mine. It took two years for a telephone to be installed in his office and would use mine for his official business. He was a jolly, likeable fellow,” recalls Sam.

In 1986, Sam opened a production company that operates in an expansive room in his home. Here, Sam and his team shoot and edit content including weddings, parties and corporate events.

Through the years, Sam and Jane have faced life’s trials and triumphs together, building a life filled with love, laughter, and resilience. In this home, they raised six children, supported each other’s dreams, and navigated the inevitable ups and downs with unwavering commitment.

But losing two of their daughters in death; one in the 1990s and the other one last year, have been their lowest moments.

“We accepted the loss but have never forgotten,” says Jane, unable to voice the last syllables in the sentence.

As they celebrate their golden anniversary in their 70s, Sam and Jane reflect on their love story, testament to the power of enduring love and the beauty of growing old together. To them, true love is not just found in big gestures, but in the simple, everyday moments shared with a loved one.

“You must be reasonable in marriage. No marriage is perfect, and mistakes will happen. We have never slept holding grudges against each other,” says Jane.

With such cherished memories, Sam and Jane are determined to continue writing their love story, one day at a time.