Glowing in her white gown, her hair braided in a classic updo, Yiru Sun was the picture perfect bride as she looked out at her 60 guests on Saturday.
But Yiru wasn't getting married, and she didn't know a single one of them.
The Princeton graduate and Corporate Vice President at New York Life Insurance had canceled her wedding two months ago after she refused to sign the proposed prenuptial agreement.
But instead of canceling the reception - which she put down a nonrefundable $8,000 deposit for - at the luxurious Harold Pratt House in the Upper East Side, Yiru decided she would find a group of children and families in need to attend instead.
And so the wedding day turned into a pre-Mother's Day luncheon, with Yiru joining forces with the Salvation Army and Inwood House to find the guests for the special day.
'At that moment, I started to think it was God's plan,' Yiru told the New York Post.
'I cannot be the princess of my wedding day, but I can give the kids a fairy tale.'
The children, who had their faces painted and were given balloons and ice pops, said the day made them feel special.
Some guests also gave musical performances on the piano and ukulele.
'I thought it was an incredibly selfless act,' guest William Natal told CBS New York.
Just to turn around and do something that helps others is an amazing show of character.'
The event also helped Yuri, single mother to a six-year-old girl, take her mind off the fact that she would not spend the day tying the knot.
Yuri would only say that she was not comfortable with the prenup, adding that she 'initially felt frustrated' when she decided to call the wedding off.
But the day was not for wallowing. Instead Yuri told her guests about how she had grown up poor in China before studying in America and winning a full scholarship to obtain her PhD in electrical engineering at Princeton.
Yuri said she couldn't have enjoyed the day more, and she believes her guests felt the same way.
'My guests feel even more happier than wedding guests,' she joked. 'They don't need to prepare wedding gifts.'
Bride cancels wedding, invites 60 needy kids to her reception
But Yiru wasn't getting married, and she didn't know a single one of them.
The Princeton graduate and Corporate Vice President at New York Life Insurance had canceled her wedding two months ago after she refused to sign the proposed prenuptial agreement.
But instead of canceling the reception - which she put down a nonrefundable $8,000 deposit for - at the luxurious Harold Pratt House in the Upper East Side, Yiru decided she would find a group of children and families in need to attend instead.
And so the wedding day turned into a pre-Mother's Day luncheon, with Yiru joining forces with the Salvation Army and Inwood House to find the guests for the special day.
'At that moment, I started to think it was God's plan,' Yiru told the New York Post.
'I cannot be the princess of my wedding day, but I can give the kids a fairy tale.'
The children, who had their faces painted and were given balloons and ice pops, said the day made them feel special.
Some guests also gave musical performances on the piano and ukulele.
'I thought it was an incredibly selfless act,' guest William Natal told CBS New York.
Just to turn around and do something that helps others is an amazing show of character.'
The event also helped Yuri, single mother to a six-year-old girl, take her mind off the fact that she would not spend the day tying the knot.
Yuri would only say that she was not comfortable with the prenup, adding that she 'initially felt frustrated' when she decided to call the wedding off.
But the day was not for wallowing. Instead Yuri told her guests about how she had grown up poor in China before studying in America and winning a full scholarship to obtain her PhD in electrical engineering at Princeton.
Yuri said she couldn't have enjoyed the day more, and she believes her guests felt the same way.
'My guests feel even more happier than wedding guests,' she joked. 'They don't need to prepare wedding gifts.'
Bride cancels wedding, invites 60 needy kids to her reception
