Sanctuary Columbus Church

Lydia and Danny's Wedding Ceremony and Reception

Ceremony

Reception

Fall

Our Wedding

Where to stay

This link will take you directly to the booking.

Embassy Suites by Hilton Columbus

Travel

Lydia Prenger & Danny Ndung'u

Part 1

“When you know you know.” We've all heard it before. Some describe it as “I felt peace about it” while others talk about their version of “we just clicked.” It was about 6 months in when our story got to that place, but let's back up a bit to the beginning… We started to get to know each other in 2017 when Lydia moved to from Chicago to Columbus. We volunteered together and became friends over time. In 2019, we got to know each other better by spending time in the same circle of friends: at costume parties, a Crew game, summertime hang outs, and even a Broadway show. By 2020, we were pretty good friends, hanging out, talking on Facetime and texting often. In April that year, we had the "do you want to be more than friends?" conversation. It actually happened twice, but you can ask us about that another time. Then we began a whole new chapter of our relationship.

Part 2

Starting our relationship early in the pandemic deepened our friendship and creativity. We took long walks at the Audubon, went on several picnics along the Olentangy &amp; Scioto rivers, met each other’s families and friends and talked a lot on Marco Polo. Fun fact: we didn't go on a fancy date until almost one year into dating. Six months into dating, Danny called his mom while taking a short walk on a cold December night and told her that Lydia might be his forever person. Danny’s mom affirmed Lydia’s character, calling her “a gem” ❤️ In spring 2021, we started talking about getting married and slowly went from “when I&nbsp;get married…” to “when we&nbsp;get married.” As time went by, our relationship deepened and was also affirmed by friends &amp; family. On one summer evening, we talked at length about marriage and at the end of the conversation, decided that were ready to be engaged. Immediately after this conversation, Danny texted Rachel, Lydia’s best friend, and set a time to meet and plan the engagement 💍

Part 3

Our engagement season has been special and beautiful--each part being intentional and treated with care. Danny reached out to Lydia’s parents to talk to them about marrying their daughter and it was some of the best hours spent with them. A few weeks before the big day, Danny had convinced Lydia that they would go to a friend’s (Brock’s) birthday party since it falls at the end of the year. She bought it without any suspicions 🙌🏾 On an overcast New Year's Day evening, Danny picked up Lydia, excitedly nervous and trying to regulate his breathing. On their way to what Lydia thought was Brock's apartment, Danny asked her to text Brock for his new home address since he had recently moved. Smooth as ever and in on the ruse, Brock texted back pretending to be confused and when we called him, he mentioned that the party had moved to a new location, our favorite coffee shop (Florin Coffee), which was close by. Lydia bought it yet again! You should have seen Lydia’s face when we walked into the coffee shop—confusion followed by a long 15-second frozen state, mouth wide open, speechless. “You got me. Oh my gosh, you got me!” When Danny popped the question, Lydia said yes without skipping a beat. We got engaged that night and ended it with a surprise party with some of our family and close friends. We wouldn't be here without those people and we are so grateful for their presence in our lives. We are so excited to celebrate our marriage with our families and friends at the wedding. Cheers! L&amp;D

Our Story

Registry

Elizabeth Van der Velde

Shepherd Ndung'u

Rachel Armas

Sammy Waweru

Vivianne Castillo

Brock DuPont

Sam Villanueva

Jason Sarver

Bob Prenger

Alex Prenger

Grace Neumann

Heather Ramsey

Caleb Caldwell

Aleida & Sofie

Wedding Party

How do you pronounce “Ndung’u”?

Great question! Lydia’s last name, Prenger, is actually a great place to start and is very similar. Notice how “Prenger” has an “uh” sound? Ndung’u is very similar but with a “oh” sound.

Where do we park?

Right at the church. Parking is very limited so please, please carpool with your friends and family.

Are my kids invited?

Unfortunately, we cannot accommodate all the kids except for those in our immediate and extended family. We love your kids but would not be able to host everyone if we invited them. We hope you understand and can't wait to see you on our big day!

Will the wedding be outside?

The ceremony will be inside the church and the reception in the backyard on grass under a covered tent.

FAQs

Photos

Things to Do

Lydia & Danny

Lydia & Danny

L&D

Lydia and Danny's Wedding Ceremony and Reception

3:00 PM–3:45 PM

Ceremony

3:45 PM–10:30 PM

Reception