A woman wore her mother-of-the-groom dress to the grocery store after the coronavirus prevented her from showing it off
Samantha Grindell
- Ann Emge's son was supposed to have a 200-guest wedding on March 28, but he and his wife decided to have a small ceremony with 12 people as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
- A week before the wedding plans changed, Emge joked on Facebook that she would wear her mother-of-the-groom gown to the grocery store if the wedding didn't happen.
- Emge followed through on her promise, wearing the gown to the grocery store, gas station, and even the airport where she works.
- "It's just been a fun experience," Emge told Insider of people's responses to the dress. "It's been a blessing for me to share the joy with other people about their marriage."
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
"It's been a blessing for me to share the joy with other people about their marriage," Emge said of the attention she's received for wearing her gown.
"Through the whole process of planning their wedding, I really had to let go of any expectations I had because it was definitely their wedding and not mine," Emge said of her son's wedding.
"But this was really the icing on the cake because it was uncharted territory for all of us," she said, speaking of having to reschedule.
"So they were just really making decisions for themselves, which was good for their marriage to start out that way."
"It was a healthy experience for all of us to walk through that and to really let them take the lead," Emge added.
Emge's son is planning on having a wedding reception over the summer.
But since her gown is long-sleeved, Emge isn't sure she'll be able to wear it at the reception.
She also noted that they haven't picked a firm date for the reception yet, as it's still unclear when it will be safe for people to gather.
She took photos throughout the airport, posing near different landmarks in the building.
"I think people just enjoyed seeing something fun going on," she said of everyone who saw her in the gown at the airport.
"Most people are afraid for their jobs and the industry, so it was just a distraction from the realities they were facing."
Emge also wore the dress to the Pittsburgh airport, where she works as a Delta agent.
"It was fun to wear it at the airport, just because it's almost depressing to be there right now," she said.
"It's been so slow recently," she added, as a result of the coronavirus.
Emge posed by the lake on her property.
"It's just been a fun experience," she said of wearing the gown.
Emge posed at a gas station, grocery store, and even pretended to fish in the gown.
"Most people were cracking up," Emge said of people's reactions to the gown, though the woman who checked her out at the grocery store was surprised by the look.
"It's a country grocery store," Emge said.
"So the checkout girl was like, 'You're a little overdressed for these parts.'"
"But once I told her the story, she was great," Emge added.
Emge told Insider that before the couple officially postponed, she joked on Facebook that she would wear her dress to the grocery store if the wedding didn't happen.
"It seemed like a joke the week before, but it was reality a week later," she added.
The day after the small wedding, Emge wore her beaded Adrianna Papell gown, which she ordered from Macy's online, around her town.
Her daughter photographed her at different locations, where people were mostly delighted to see her ensemble.
Although it wasn't the wedding they imagined, Emge's family worked to make the day special for the newlyweds.
"They got married at our house which is on a lake, so after the ceremony, they took a boat ride," Emge said.
"The neighbors came out and cheered for them and made signs. Some people threw birdseed and rice at them. Some people set off fireworks for them and gave them gifts of toilet paper."
"It was just a last-minute, really unexpected, fun thing," she added.
Ann Emge's son Matt had to change his wedding plans because of the coronavirus.
The 51-year-old mother told Insider that her son was supposed to have a 200-guest wedding on March 28, 2020, in Ohio, but the coronavirus prevented the event from happening.
The couple postponed their reception, but they had a small, 12-person wedding at Emge's home on March 21.
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