Sure enough, that Saturday 90 homeless people attended the banquet. Many even dressed up to enjoy the lavish meal that included salad, gnocci, salmon and a tri-trip roast.
Just days before 27 year old bride-to-be Quinn was to say ‘I do’, cold feet kicked in and the wedding was called off by the groom. Quinn’s whole world came crashing down and devastation shook the family after mother Kari Duane received the call that the wedding wasn’t going to happen.
After spending a non-refundable $35,000 on the reception, it was decided that the family would invite Sacramento’s homeless to come and enjoy an extravagant feast at the city hall. Kari Duane described it as something they could do to ‘give back’ to the community, after all, how could they let such a spread go to waste? Sure enough, that Saturday 90 homeless people attended the banquet. Many even dressed up to enjoy the lavish meal that included salad, gnocci, salmon and a tri-trip roast.
With plates piled high and stomachs filled, many of the guests couldn’t praise the Duane family enough for what they had done. Rashad Abdullah, with his wife and five children in tow, called the event a ‘blessing’. His wife, Erika Craycraft, understanding the heartbreak Quinn was going through, reiterated how kind and caring she was just after she had lost something so important to her.
Although happy faces filled the hall, the bride-to-be chose to stay at home, still pained by the situation. Many in her position would have been too overwhelmed with their own problem to have given a thought to those much worse-off than themselves. A true inspiration to others, the Duane family made the best of a bad situation and pulled together to help their community.
As the wedding package also included a non-refundable honeymoon, the next day mother and daughter jetted off on a well-deserved holiday to Belize!
