When downtown New Westminster was gutted by a huge fire, Marisa Wiens sprang into action.
After learning that Golden Brides bridal shop was one of the local businesses damaged in the fire, the 31-year-old Surrey woman started a Facebook page for past brides to donate their gowns to the women who lost theirs in the fire.
Gowns For Golden Brides was an immediate success, Wiens told News 11 30. “There are many ladies willing to give up something that is so sentimental to them,” she told the news organization.
But on Oct. 16, Wiens learned that the burned down store Golden Brides is associated with another bridal shop located in Vancouver. Most "brides have gotten a replacement dress," she wrote on the Facebook page. "I am going to leave this FB page up still for brides that have not been fortunate enough to find a replacement yet."
Not wanting to put the hundreds of wonderful and thoughtful donations to waste, Wiens decided to keep her project going, posting the following update on her Facebook page the next day.
"Update: While most brides may have gotten a replacement dress- there are still brides waiting for a refund and have to scramble to buy a 2nd dress. I can only imagine how stressful this would be! Please keep posting pictures of your dress to the wall here and hopefully this helps out brides in need. Very soon- we will be setting up with www.wedding-recycle.com and you will be able to post your dress there for DONATION or to SELL if you so choose."
The new gown gifting initiative, Can't Buy Me Love, is a partnership with Nanaimo's Lindsay Recknell of wedding-recycle.com, Global News reports. Wedding-recycle.com connects past brides with future ones, allowing them to trade wedding supplies of all sorts.
“There is a ton of donations that have come forth," Wiens told the broadcaster. "If people still want to donate, then this way they can. And it does not have to go to the brides who lost their dress in the fire."
Many of Can't Buy Me Love's items are free; others are listed at around $150 to $200.
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