Graduating students from high schools in Fort McMurray will be getting help from Weyburn in the form of formal grad dresses and accessories, and even some suits for the guys.
The Weyburn office for CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) Local 5999 put out the call for people to donate grad dresses, and the response was overwhelming.
“It started with a post on Facebook,” said Wanda Edwards, vice-president of the local.
“Originally we thought we’d be able to take them up there in a car, but the community response is just overwhelming.”
The CUPE office ended up with 101 grad outfits, including some suits, along with shoes, clutch purses and other accessories.
“We’ve had a lot of tears but happy tears,” said Edwards.
To make the whole effort complete, a volunteer came along to transport the dresses, as tattoo artist Sunshine had begun a campaign to fill up a trailer with donated household items to give towards the residents of Fort McMurray.
Through her posts on social media, she received donations of everything from bottled water, soap, shampoo and clothing to diapers, pet food and towels, and she volunteered to take the dresses with her.
She and her boyfriend left with a crammed-full trailer on Friday and took the load to an evacuation centre in Edmonton that is taking donations that are bound for Fort McMurray residents.
“The community has pulled together fantastically, with everything you need to get your feet back on the ground,” said Sunny.
The trip to Edmonton was successful, she said on Monday.
“The trip went great. The people accepting donations were fantastic and organized, and Shannon, the dress lady, was just amazing,” she said in a text, adding there were lots of hugs as she dropped off the donations.
