After canceling her wedding, woman donates venue to grateful couple

Without the generosity of a stranger, Halie Hipsher and Matt Jones would not have been able to move their wedding up to ensure that her grandfather could attend the joyous day.

The stranger, Kolbie Sanders of Tyler, Texas, was set to get married on Oct. 20 at the Belle Vue Wedding and Event Venue. The wedding was called off, but she wasn't going to be able to get the $3,500 rental fee back. The venue told her she could pick a new date and hold a different event, but Sanders had another idea: She went on Facebook and announced she was giving away the venue to a couple that wanted to get married on the 20th. Messages came flooding in, and after whittling down the couples, she put names in a bowl and picked one slip of paper.

Sanders chose Jones and Hipsher, who had told her they planned on getting married in fall 2019, but Hipsher was afraid her grandfather, who has stage 4 pancreatic cancer, might not make it another year. Hipsher and Jones jumped into planning mode, and a photographer and other vendors donated their services. "Walking down the aisle was breathtaking and I wouldn't want to change one second of the day because it is all I dreamed of and more," Hipsher told Good Morning America. Sanders, who stopped by the wedding for photos with Hipsher and her grandfather, said she was thrilled when the bride won, and her "reaction definitely made all of this worth it." Catherine Garcia

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