SWNS
Getting cold feet before wedding might not be too unusual nowadays, but this bride-to-be not only called off her big day, she also donated the entire wedding to complete strangers.
Kolbie Sanders of Texas, 24, decided to turn the end of her four-year relationship with her fiancé Skylar Cotton. She called off the wedding on Saturday, October 13, only one week before her set-to-be wedding date on October 20th.
Bride-To-Be Gives Out Her Wedding For Free
According to the Daily Mail, the University of Texas at Tyler student told friends on Facebook that she had only 24 hours to find a couple prepared to get married at Belle Vue wedding venue in a week.
“With my engagement ending, I’ve come to find tremendous peace in knowing that I did the right thing for the both of us. With that being said, now I want to do the right thing by others and let some good come out of this decision,” Sanders wrote on her Facebook. “This is a long shot but since my wedding venue has been paid for in full already, I have decided to donate my venue valued at $3,500 to a couple to use for their wedding day!”
“The catch: I have 24 hours to find the couple and they would need to be ready to get married on the date that my venue is booked for which is this Saturday, October 20th!”
Sanders said her hairdresser gave her the idea to give away her big day. “This is for couples who can’t afford a fancy venue or for couples who are spending too much money on their kids to be able to afford a nice wedding,” she added. “This is for couples who love each other and will continue to choose each other for the rest of their lives.”
Sanders said that her fiancé Skylar Cotton is also on board with offering their wedding to another couple and the story of their raffle has since gone viral on social media.
“There was no scandal. We fell out of love and it didn’t feel right to get married,” Sanders said.
Mother-Of-One Is Her Lucky Winner
After her post, Sanders was inundated with messages from hundreds of husbands and brides-to-be desperate to win her big day. After whittling down the applications to a shortlist of 45, Sanders has picked Halie Hipsher as her lucky winner.
Hipsher and her fiancé Matthew Jones will wed on Saturday, October 20, which is a year before they had planned to marry. Hipsher, who is overjoyed, said her ailing grandfather will now be able to see her walking down the aisle.
Insurance worker Halie’s story stood out because her grandfather Edwin Truett Hipsher, 81, is suffering from pancreatic cancer and doesn’t have long to live.
“As he is nearing the closing of his chapter this donation will put us a year ahead of schedule and he will be able to attend,” Hipsher said. “Thank you. I can’t say that enough. I’ll probably be saying it 20,000 times.”
Hipsher also invited Sanders to attend their wedding as the guest of honor.
“She invited me and I am going to the wedding. I wanted to see it followed through. I want to see her get married, it will make me feel complete,” Sanders said.