Mother’s prayers might have been answered – but with a R1m price tag

By Piet Van Niekerk

IT HAS been known for farmers to go down on their knees and pray for rain, but praying for the breakup of a relationship has landed at least one Patensie farmer and his mother in the centre of High Court litigation worth R1-million.

Sunette Bridges, the popular blonde Afrikaans singing sensation and daughter of the late Afrikaans serenader, Bles Bridges, is claiming this amount from the pair after the son dumped her just a month before their much- talked-about wedding. The nuptials should have taken place on January 14 this year at Port Elizabeth’s Boardwalk casino complex.

Bridges – who at the age of 34 has been married four times – claims in two sets of letters of demand filed by lawyers in Pretoria and Port Elizabeth that Mary van Jaarsveld of the farm Kwaggaskloof near Patensie formed prayer groups in the valley to ask God to break up her son, Deon’s, engagement to her. She also claims her future mother-in-law’s open rejection of her prompted her 32-year-old son – better known as “Skip” – to dump her after she had spent thousands of rands to move from Pretoria to his farm, enrol her children at the private Woodridge College and arrange to have her furniture moved to Patensie.

She also claims for losses for money spent on the reception for 180 guests, a Ferrari-red wedding dress and wedding invitations.

The Van Jaarsveld family lawyer, Quiryn Spruyt of Friedman Scheckter Attorneys, confirmed the litigation but the family prevented him from discussing the case or divulging any details. In the Gamtoos Valley, however, the matter is the talk of the town.

An advocate has already been briefed to defend the case in the Port Elizabeth High Court. A lawyer said one of the legal issues to be debated would be if anybody could be sued for praying.

Bridges is claiming at least R400 000 for “trauma” caused by these prayers.

She told The Herald “any rumours” about her taking legal action against the pair should be “taken seriously”.