Bride Grieves Her Mom’s Death by Transforming Her Wedding Dress in a ‘Healing’ and Unexpected Way (Exclusive)

When Delaware bride Ana began planning her wedding, she knew she wanted to remember her late mom — who died of lung cancer at the age of 46 in 2008 — during the ceremony, but not through a traditional remembrance table.

Instead of emphasizing her mother’s absence, the newlywed — who was only 15 when her mom, a NICU nurse and teacher, died — wanted something more symbolic.

So when Ana, 32, discovered her mother’s wedding dress from the 1980s, which she didn’t realize was still in her dad’s attic until they found it during clean-out in 2023, she knew exactly what to do.

“I always loved the sleeves of the dress,” Ana tells PEOPLE, adding that she “immediately decided to repurpose them for the bridal shower,” which was largely attended by her matriarch’s family. “There were many tears at the shower when people recognized the sleeves.”

Still, there was the ceremony to think about. And Ana found a way to honor her mom in that special moment too.

“Soon after my mom passed, I purchased wall art of recycled brass bells and had it hanging in my house. One day in 2023, I walked by it and thought to place bells on everyone’s seat to create an atmospheric energy during the recessional. With the dress sleeves repurposed, I had most of the fabric left and the week of my wedding, my dad and I spent hours cutting the lace into strips and tying them to the bells made of recycled metal that I found on Etsy.”

Although cutting the dress felt “a little savage” for Ana, she adds, “it was ultimately a beautiful way to connect her journey to mine.”

A video from the couple’s nuptials, held at the Hagley Museum in Wilmington, Delaware, was shared to TikTok by Ana’s photographer, Rebecca of East Coast-based company Luna & Lark, who tells PEOPLE that documenting the scene and seeing guests beaming with “overwhelming joy and pride” was “uplifting and inspiring.”

The clip garnered heartfelt comments like this one that read, “And her mother was once again the loudest one cheering her on.”

“I see a lot of remembrance gestures at weddings, but this was beautifully interactive and created an atmosphere. It naturally made some people cry. A sense of joy and remembrance was present the entire time and you could just feel it,” says Rebecca.

She continues: “Even though people were cheering, the bells seemed to ring louder than all of that and everyone was using them. Normally if you give guests something, like petals to throw, only some will follow through. I didn’t see a single person not ringing their bell as they came down the aisle and that was really special to witness.”

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After the wedding, the bells found new homes with Ana’s loved ones. “Throughout the months following, my friends have shared pictures of the bells on a mantles, hanging from Christmas trees, on an ancestor table, in a keepsake box.” She says handing out the memento was like gifting her moms’ “love to those who knew her and those who wish they could have known her.”

The wedding dress and bells weren’t the only sentimental part of the day. “I had gifted my best friend and childhood neighbor my mother’s pin of a white rose on her wedding day in 2016,” shares Ana. “She wore it as she placed her veil on me on my wedding day. That was a beautiful surprise.”

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Looking back, Ana says her mom would’ve appreciated “the practicality and intentionality” that came from recycling the gown.

“My mom and I were very close, although I was so young when she passed that we did not get the opportunity to fully transition our relationship from parent to friend. She was deeply caring and empathetic, a natural mentor who inspired me and my brother [who officiated the wedding], her students and her patients through love and encouragement. She was a gentle force with a quiet confidence.”