A bride to be was left a touching surprise by her late grandfather eight years ago and now, she’s able to put it to good use.
Sara Leeds, from New York, shared the emotional moment she deposited a check from a savings account her late grandpa had set aside specifically for her wedding dress in a clip on TikTok.
Leeds (@saraanneleeds) first learned about her grandfather’s special gift from her mom. “It came up because part of my Mother’s Day gift to her was a trip to go wedding dress shopping just for fun. At the time, I had only been engaged for a month,” the 30-year-old said.
The news was especially poignant because it came at the end of a weekend spent at her cousin’s wedding, where Sara and her family had been feeling what she described as “signs” from her grandpa.
Leeds explained that her grandfather was a fur coat designer in New York City’s Garment District and their shared love of fashion formed a deep bond between them.
“When I was growing up, he’d take me on a trip to Bloomingdales for back-to-school shopping every year. And when he got too sick to come along, he’d write checks and I’d show him a ‘haul’ back at his nursing home,” she said.
But beyond this, Leeds’ grandfather had a remarkable history. “A twice escaped POW in WWII, a cancer survivor, an entrepreneur, and an incredibly loving father, grandfather, and husband. As the only granddaughter in my family I felt an especially unique bond with him,” she said.
Even in his final months, he was thinking about his granddaughter’s future. A text message from Leeds’ mom saved from that time confirms that he had planned this gift intentionally, knowing how much it would mean to her.
“I still have a voicemail he left me on my birthday in 2014 where he says he wished he could have taken me shopping to celebrate. Fashion was always a way to express his love for me and this was an extension of that,” Leeds said.
Since it was posted on February 4, Leeds’ video has been viewed over 760,000 times and received over 40,000 likes.
Many other users shared stories of how their loved ones have left legacies to them after passing away.
One user explained that her mom died soon after she had married while she and her partner were trying to conceive.
“She left me with money for a christening gown. I found out I was pregnant on her bday,” she wrote.
Leeds also loved this suggestion from another user: “If you don’t get his handwriting stitched into that dress somewhere!!”
When the moment finally came to deposit the check, Leeds was overwhelmed with emotion.
“I hadn’t yet been overly excited to be a bride, as a lot about wedding culture has made me uncomfortable. But when I received this gift, it made me really lean in and get so excited about this one-of-a-kind moment in my life.”
After scouring seven bridal salons and trying 34 wedding dresses, Leeds finally said yes to her dream dress.
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