WATCH ABOVE: Alexa Norona and Josh Phillips had planned a big wedding but decided to cancel when the bride-to-be got pregnant. As Sean O’Shea reports, their $5,000 deposit was at stake until a Global News story aired.
TORONTO — A Toronto couple who chose to cancel a large wedding because the bride-to-be got pregnant, has gotten their $5,000 deposit back.
The refund follows a Global News story about their plight with the Eglinton Grand, where the wedding and reception were booked.
“They were unwilling to give us a refund,” said Alexa Norona, who is expecting a son next month.
“They said, ‘too bad.'”
Norona and her husband, Josh Phillips, booked a wedding at the event space in August, 2016.
Norona says it was believed she could not conceive; so when she became pregnant, the couple was delighted.
But they say they realized it was not a good financial plan to have a large wedding. Instead, they got married in her parents’ backyard.
Technically, the $5,000 wedding deposit was not refundable, according to their contract with Dynamic Hospitality Group.
“We felt hopeful — you are a strong influence,” Phillips said, referring to the impression left by the Global News story.
The event management company said it was not trying to take advantage of the situation.
“There’s no bad guys here — we’re not in the business of stealing money from people,” said company executive Sam D’Uva.
“We’re in the business of having happy customers.”
After the story aired, family friends of the couple booked the theatre for the same date.
Dynamic Hospitality Group agreed to refund the $5,000 deposit, which the company retrieved Friday from the company’s head office.
“It’s a really big deal for us,” Norona said, clutching the cheque. “This is really great.”
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