The wildfire that has consumed thousands of acres around Fort McMurray in Alberta, Canada and displaced nearly 100,000 residents from the area has been well documented on nearly every news platform available. It is one of the worst recent natural disasters in North America and shows no sign of being under control any time soon. Among the evacuees to Edmonton and other cities in the area are Elise Boissonneault and her fiancé Brandon Phillippo. The pair were planning to get married in Toronto over the weekend but were forced out of their home by the fire and the city’s mandatory evacuation in the days leading up to their nuptials.
The good news is that, in the process of evacuating, the couple were able to save all of their pets and important documents, but in a tragic twist, Elise was not able to get her dress before heading to a safe location. With only days to go before the supposed “happiest day of her life,” there was no guarantee that the wedding would even go forward, let alone involve anything resembling a traditional dress or setup. That’s when the kindness of strangers leaped onto the scene, and the results of their support was heartwarming enough to restore your faith that Canadians are the nicest people in the world. That is, if you ever lost faith in the first place.
After hearing the wedding might be canceled completely, Elise and Brandon’s wedding photographer sprung into action on Facebook and called for any and all donations that could help. As you might expect, not only did Elise and Brandon get all the help they needed to go forward with the wedding (mostly as planned), but multiple wedding dresses were donated by a local bridal shop. Photos from the happy day show the couple beaming from ear to ear and thoroughly enjoying themselves.The photographer for the day Alex Neary told Mashable what he witnessed:
“The wedding day was amazing. They were just so happy to be married and couldn’t wipe the smiles off their face all day. They decided to not let a natural disaster ruin the happiest day of their lives…”
Not even the thought of what was happening back home could wipe the smiles off their faces, and that is something truly amazing. Plus, Elise looked truly stunning in both dresses, which is far from the most important piece of the day but icing on top of the cake after such an awful ordeal. This is just one inspiring story out of many following the devastation in Fort McMurray, and there will surely be more to come as the fire winds down and the true impact to the area is revealed.
(via Mashable)
