Before eco-designing with recycled materials became a “thing”, there was Phyllis Hill. She and her husband James recently celebrated their 66th wedding anniversary unveiling once again her treasured keepsake gown.
In 1948, one year before their wedding, James offered his WWII silk parachute to his best gal, Phyllis, saying she could do whatever she wanted with it. The next time he saw it, his bride was wearing it while walking down the aisle.
The Gibson, Indiana couple has been approached by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC about donating the gown for their collection, but the Hills decided they’d like to pass it down within the family. Fortunately, the museum has another U.S. parachute wedding dress from that era in their collection, a nylon model that saved Maj. Claude Hensinger’s life in 1947. That gown was worn by his bride, daughter and son’s wife before being gifted to the Smithsonian’s archive.
(WATCH the video or read the story from WFIE-TV)
Story Tip From Carilyn