Being a teenager is tough. The adolescent years are ripe with insecurities and peer pressure— and, for the most part, we all just want to fit in. For teen girls, especially, there’s a lot of pressure to look good. Nevaeha Smith, a 14-year-old from Pennsylvania, was no different from her peers in this way. The teenager’s eighth-grade formal was rapidly approaching, and she wanted to look her best.
When Nevaeha was planning for her big night, she came across the perfect dress.
The outfit was a gorgeous, modern, two-piece with a floral, high-waisted skirt and a beaded crop top. When the teen tried it on it fit perfectly— but unfortunately, it also bore a $200 price tag.
Ricky Smith, Nevaeha’s dad works three jobs to pay the bills and the teen knew the dress was out of his price range.
She was obviously upset but figured she’d just have to find another outfit. But little did the teen know, her father was planning a surprise. Ricky saw how much his daughter wanted the dress and was determined to buy it for her.
Unbeknownst to Neveaha, Ricky started stowing away cash from his rotating shifts at Circle K, Popeye’s, and McDonald’s to buy her the outfit.
In a video uploaded two months ago, you see the moment Ricky presents Neveah with her big surprise.
The teen is seated at a table at one of her dad’s places of employment when he approaches her with a garment bag.
Neveaha was under the impression her grandmother had bought the outfit— so, as you can imagine, the teen was hoping for something with a similar style.
“I told her that her grandmother bought it for her,” Ricky later revealed.
“She said, ‘Oh okay, is it a two-piece?’ and I was like, ‘I don’t know.'”
When Nevaeh looks in the bag and sees her dream dress, the girl’s jaw completely drops.
“Oh my God! This is the dress!” she exclaims.
“This is the dress I wanted!”
Ricky’s heartwarming surprise was shared on the Style Boutique Facebook page alongside a post which read: “Now this is what being a dad is all about! Her dad works three jobs and surprised her with her dream dress for 8th grade formal after telling her it was a not a financial possibility. He made it happen and surprised her at his work! Definitely daddy’s little girl!”
Since being uploaded by the boutique, the video has been viewed over 3 million times, garnering more than 212,000 Facebook shares.
Comments on the video read:
“I love that she pushes the dress out of the way to hug him.”
“Hold on, I think I got something in my eye, they won’t stop tearing up! What a wonderful surprise, great dad and appreciative girl. Can see the love.”
“I think what I love most in this is where she seems to realize that the real gift is her amazing dad. She just keeps hugging him.”
In a Skype interview with CBS This Morning, Neveah said: “I’m grateful that he found a way to get me the dress and I really appreciate how many jobs he worked.”
Ricky, on his end, added:
“I just don’t want people to think just because you don’t have the money you can’t make your kids happy, because you can.”
See the heartwarming moment below!
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