Teens donate prom dresses to Maritime wildfire relief
For Taylor Hernandez of Sydney Mines, N.S., donating her old prom dress to a girl who may have lost hers in the Nova Scotia wildfires was the least she could do.
"It really hit close to home for me,” Hernandez said. “There's a lot of friends and family that I have near those fires."
It hit so close to home that had the 24-year-old paramedic not moved from Hammonds Plains to Cape Breton just a few weeks ago, she would have been directly impacted by the wildfires.
"Luckily, I got out of there before the fires started, but had I not left when I did, I would be evacuated from where I was living at the time,” Hernandez said.
More than 60 dresses from across the province have already been collected at Alyssa’s Formals in Lower Sackville, N.S.
The online movement to donate a dress to a girl in need has grown so quickly, the owner decided to provide a central location to make everything easier.
"With the idea of girls donating their dresses individually, you may have to go to someone's home,” said owner Tracey Simms. “Maybe it's not the right size, then you'd have to go to another location. This way, we're trying to centralize that."
She adds that it’s not just the girls she's looking out for.
"There's also the consideration too that there are some young men that have lost their prom attire as well, so a little bit more men's wear would be fantastic,” Simms said.
Back in Cape Breton, Hernandez has collected at least ten dresses from friends and plans to drop them off on her next trip back to Halifax.
She hopes in spite of what's going on, someone else can have a prom night as magical as hers.
"Hopefully it can make their day feel a lot better, even though their dress that they had originally picked out for themselves is gone,” Hernandez said. “Hopefully they can still feel as beautiful as they would have felt in their dress, in mine."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.
Keeping these exotic pets is 'cruel' and 'dangerous,' Canadian animal advocates say
Canadian pet owners are finding companionship beyond dogs and cats. Tigers, alligators, scorpions and tarantulas are among some of the exotic pets they are keeping in private homes, which pose risks to public safety and animal welfare, advocates say.
Prince William and wife Kate thank public for birthday messages for son Louis
Prince William and his wife Kate thanked the public for their messages which had been sent to mark the sixth birthday of their youngest son Louis on Tuesday.
She was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father. Then life dealt her a blow
Anne Marie Cavner was the closest she'd ever been to meeting her biological father, but then life dealt her a blow. From an unexpected loss to a host of new relationships, a DNA test changed her life, and she doesn't regret a thing.
How quietly promised law changes in the 2024 federal budget could impact your day-to-day life
The 2024 federal budget released last week includes numerous big spending promises that have garnered headlines. But, tucked into the 416-page document are also series of smaller items, such as promising to amend the law regarding infant formula and to force banks to label government rebates, that you may have missed.
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised
'How much plastic will you have for dinner, sir? And you, ma'am?' While that may seem like a line from a satirical skit on Saturday Night Live, research is showing it's much too close to reality.
'Catch-and-kill' strategy to be a focus as testimony resumes in Trump hush money case
A veteran tabloid publisher was expected to return to the witness stand Tuesday in Donald Trump's historic hush money trial.
Quebec farmers have been protesting since December. Is anyone listening?
Upset about high interest rates, growing paperwork and heavy regulatory burdens, protesting farmers have become a familiar sight across Quebec since December.
South Korean sentenced to 14 months in jail for killing 76 cats
South Korean man has been sentenced to 14 months in prison for killing 76 cats in one of the country's most gruesome cases of animal cruelty in recent years.