As the first bride to be awarded this amazing gift, and also a member of the board of The Wedding Pink, I have been lucky enough to witness many beautiful moments throughout this journey. So far, we have helped eight couples by giving them their dream weddings, right here in Colorado. One of my favorite parts of The Wedding Pink process is wedding dress shopping. Our brides have graciously allowed me to join in their once-in-a-lifetime experience, and for that I’m so grateful. I’ve met mothers, sisters, best friends, and it really makes me feel like we’re all one big family. Our “Pink Family” as Cheryl Ungar, our founder, likes to call it.

For the second year in a row, we have been lucky enough to partner with The Bridal Collection for our wedding dress needs. Last year, The Bridal Collection graciously donated two beautiful gowns to our 2017 bride, Laurie, and her wife Jessie. Jordan was our stylist and she was able to find two dresses that perfectly matched each of our brides’ personalities.

Liz trying on dresses at The Bridal Collection

This year Jordan was at it again, helping our 2018 bride, Liz, find her dream dress. Liz was in town from the East Coast last week doing some wedding planning with our rockstar wedding planner Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings. While The Wedding Pink is a Denver-based non-profit, we accept submissions from all over the country. Because we needed to fit as much planning into one weekend as we possibly could, The Bridal Collection was tasked with the tough job of getting Liz to “Say Yes to the Dress” in one 90-minute appointment. Jordan was up for the challenge. She would come sweeping through the sitting area under a mountain of fabric, pulling the dressing room curtain closed, while we sat with baited breath, waiting for Liz to come out in each dress. Jordan dazzled us with fancy words like moonstone, Swarovski, and French lace. It’s clear that she really knows her stuff. While each dress was gorgeous in its own unique way, we all knew Liz had found her dress when she came out with tears in her eyes. We all knew it was the one. The Madison James stunner of a dress was absolutely gorgeous on Liz. I know she can’t wait for her big day where she will forever be joined to her fiancé, Lee in October at The Sanctuary Golf Course in Sedalia.

Liz says Yes to the Dress with a little help from her BFF

Our happy bride Liz has selected a dress with the help of her BFF; Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings; Melissa Childs, 2011 Wedding Pink bride and the fabulous stylist Jordan from The Bridal Collection. — Our happy bride Liz has selected a dress with the help of her BFF; Ann Marlin of Cloud 9 Weddings; Melissa Childs, 2011 Wedding Pink bride and the fabulous stylist Jordan from The Bridal Collection.

Our appointment at The Bridal Collection was my first time meeting Liz in person, but I couldn’t help but feel emotional myself. After all, what does a wedding dress represent? It signifies love, commitment, and unity. But for our brides, who are also breast cancer survivors, the wedding dress is a reminder to us that we fought through something horrific and we came out on the other side, survivors. We live to see another day and we get to experience a wedding with the love of our lives. For a brief second, we forget what we went through, and bask in the realization that our wedding day is approaching. As we wear this wedding dress down the aisle, everyone’s eyes are on us, yet our eyes are firmly fixed on the one person in our lives who has been in the trenches with us; our support system who loves us for who we are – scars and all. The wedding dress makes us feel like a princess. In the mirror, we don’t see a cancer patient. We see a bride ready to start our lives with our one true love. We are eternally grateful for The Bridal Collection’s continued support of The Wedding Pink and for helping our brides’ dreams come true. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

~Melissa Childs, Board Member, The Wedding Pink