Dressed to impress – and to scoot – Vernon women turn heads in wedding dress scooter ride – Vernon News

Wedding dress scooter ride

Photo: Holly Marie Read

If you happened to witness a bunch of women – several in wedding dresses – riding e-scooters around Vernon on Saturday, you weren’t seeing things or suffering from heat stroke.

“Take those fancy dresses out of your closet once in awhile. They need exercise, too,” Holly Marie Read posted in the Hell Yeah Vernon! Facebook group.

The popular post has received more than 400 reactions and dozens of comments cheering on the group.

The idea was the brainchild of Vernon resident Desta Balducci, who started organizing annual wedding dress get togethers among friends a few years ago.

The fun took a break the last couple of years due to the pandemic, but returned this past weekend for its third celebration.

“We buy these beautiful dresses and wear them for one day, Balducci says. “I thought, ‘Why don’t we pull them out and have a party?'”

The group grew to include friends of friends and any ‘fancy dress’ … “Not everyone is married, and for some a wedding dress might have bad memories,” says Balducci.

On Saturday, about 15 women gathered at Balducci’s East Hill home, and 11 of them set out on scooters, riding downtown and through Polson Park.

“We forgot the big car show was on, so it was really busy … Oh my gosh, it was amazing. People were cheering, honking their horns and whistling. It was so much fun!”