With marriage preparation you get to start your marriage the way you mean to go on
You’ve planned the ceremony, the venue, the dress, the playlist. But have you planned your marriage?
Apart from being a Durban-based marriage officer, I am a credentialled Prepare/Enrich facilitator. I offer a marriage preparation programme for couples who want to walk into married life with their eyes open — not just to the wedding day, but to the decades that follow it. Because every session runs online, couples anywhere in South Africa — or the world — can take part.
I believe a wedding ceremony should be meaningful. I believe a marriage should be too. This programme is my way of helping you build one.
Why invest in marriage preparation?
Building a life together takes some knowledge and a few life skills — communication, conflict resolution, managing money, navigating in-laws, agreeing on the things that matter most.
You weren’t born knowing how to do this well, and surprisingly very few of us learn to master these skills while growing up. After all, the people whose example we followed in our formative years might not have been great at these skills either.
In this marriage preparation process we don’t go looking for problems. Most couples who go through it are relieved to discover just how much they already agree on. What it does do is give you a structured, honest space to talk about the things that are easy to skip past in the busyness of everyday life (especially if you are planning a wedding) — before they become the things you argue about five years in.
Introducing Prepare/Enrich
Since Dr David Olson developed Prepare/Enrich in 1980, it’s grown into one of the most extensively researched relationship tools available — used by facilitators in more than 100 countries, drawn on in over 1,800 academic journal articles, and credited with strengthening more than 5 million relationships worldwide.
The Process:
You and your partner each complete a personalised, confidential online questionnaire — separately, in your own time. It covers the topics that matter most in a relationship: communication, conflict resolution, finances, intimacy, family and friends, personality styles, and more.
I then use your results to guide you through a series of private, facilitated conversations. It’s not a test you can pass or fail, and it isn’t therapy. Prepare/Enrich simply gives us a clear, honest picture of where you’re already strong as a couple, and where a bit more conversation would serve you well — then we work through it together.
Why couples find it valuable:
• It’s personalised. No two couples get the same report. The conversation is built entirely around your relationship, not a generic checklist.
• It’s evidence-based. Research has repeatedly shown Prepare/Enrich can identify couples’ strengths and growth areas with a high degree of accuracy, and that couples who complete it see real, lasting improvements in relationship satisfaction.
• It surfaces the important conversations early. Many couples tell me they discussed things in these sessions they’d never quite gotten around to discussing before — even after years together.
• It’s practical, not clinical. You’ll walk away with real skills for communicating and resolving conflict, not just a report to file away.
• It’s private and unhurried. Just the two of you and me, with the space to talk honestly.
How the programme works
The programme is presented entirely online with personal video calls, so it doesn’t matter where in the world you’re based.
- Four private sessions, each 60 minutes, just the two of you and me
- Delivered over video call — no travel required
- Sessions are scheduled at times that suit you
- Priced from R3,750.
Frequently Asked Questions
What exactly is Prepare/Enrich?
It’s a premarital and marriage assessment tool used worldwide by trained facilitators. You each complete an online questionnaire, and I use your combined results to guide structured conversations designed to strengthen your relationship before you marry.
Do we need to be engaged already?
No. Many couples complete the programme once they’re engaged, but you’re welcome to start the conversation earlier if you’d like.
Is this counselling or therapy?
No. It’s educational, not clinical. If, during our sessions, it becomes clear that you’d benefit from professional counselling on a particular issue, I’ll always say so and can point you in the right direction.
Do we have to be religious to take part?
Not at all. Prepare/Enrich includes an optional spiritual beliefs component, but the programme works just as well for couples of any faith or none.
Where are the sessions held?
Everywhere and nowhere in particular — the whole programme runs online, so you can join from home, wherever in the world that is.
Do we need to book you as our wedding celebrant to do this programme?
No. The marriage preparation programme is a standalone offering, open to any couple, whether or not I’m officiating your ceremony.
How much does it cost?
The programme is priced from R3,750. Get in touch and I’ll confirm the details for your circumstances.
How do we get started?
Simply reach out below, and I’ll be in touch to arrange your first session.
YES, WE WOULD LIKE TO GIVE OUR MARRIAGE THE BEST POSSIBLE START.
PLEASE CONTACT US ABOUT THE MARRIAGE PREPARATION PROGRAMME
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