RIVERVIEW, Fla. (WFTS) — An event hall in Riverview, Florida is giving away free wedding dresses to teachers as a thank you for all their hard work during the pandemic.

Jenna Rose, a fourth-grade teacher at Riverview Elementary School, was surprised with a dress in her classroom this week.

“This means the world to me and the fact that I can share it with my kids means even more to me. It’s such a special moment,” said Rose.

The school's principal nominated Rose for the dress because of her big heart.

“As an educator, that’s what it’s all about. If she has a heart for the kids, the kids are going to want to learn and they love her in return,” said Teri Madill

Rose said it’s nice to be appreciated, especially after a couple of challenging years during the pandemic.

“It’s definitely been a challenge. It’s the understatement of the century, but I’ve learned a lot about myself and about my kids and about my career, so that’s been rewarding,” said Rose.

She said receiving a free dress is a huge help when it comes to paying for a wedding on a teacher’s salary.

“The fact that this is something we can check off the finance list and something we don’t have to budget for is amazing,” said Rose.

This story was originally reported by Robert Boyd on abcactionnews.com.

TAMPA, Fla. (WFTS) — There are many ways to remember a deceased loved one, but a seamstress in Tampa, Florida has come up with a unique.

Over the years Jade Sanchez, owner of Sew Sew Amazing Alterations, has stitched everything from sweaters to pants to gowns, but 2022 is becoming the year of the "memory bear."

What’s so heartfelt is that the materials used to make these bears are from the shirts and pants loved one used to wear.

“Their favorite clothing that they always used to wear, maybe something you bought for them,” said Sanchez.“It’s a great way to put them to use definitely, even if you only have one shirt,” said Sanchez.

The first "memory bear" Jade created was for the family of her own boyfriend, Sherrod Hunter, who died suddenly from a heart attack.

Hunter’s favorite shorts were used for the belly of the bear that was given to his sister Fredrita Blanks.

“He literally wore them all the time, now mind you he had clothes for days, but whenever we saw him he had these shorts on,” said Blanks. “So when we got the bears we cried because it was very emotional, but right after the tears, came the laughter.”

Sanchez embroiders a special message to the families on the tummy of every bear.

“These are clothes I used to wear. Whenever you hold it know that I am there, love Sherrod,” is what the bear read.

“When someone passes suddenly you really don’t have the time to say goodbye but this right here, this is our goodbye, this is our goodbye from Rod,” said Blanks.

Sanchez is just so glad she can use her talents to create something that’s so positively Tampa Bay. She’s already made 25 bears in the past month and they are all one of a kind.

“My motto is every stitch is made with love, I love what I do,” said Sanchez.

“I keep it in the car, in my room, the living room, he travels with me,” said Blanks who joked about what her brother would say about the bear.

“He would say, ‘no she didn’t, no she didn’t cut up my shorts,’” said Blanks.

This story was originally reported by Robert Boyd on abcactionnews.com.

PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — There is a group of retired ladies living in a Pinellas County RV park who have formed their own assembly line when it comes to making masks.

They call themselves the Crafty Ladies of Sherwood Forrest RV Resort. They are making hundreds of masks a week, and because the bulk of them go to our veterans, patriotism is a big deal.

The red, white and blue runs deep not just in their fabric but their spirit.

“I feel helpless with what’s going on with the Covid and this is my tiny little way of contributing,” said Micheal Barsi.

Barsi is one of more than a dozen residents who are part of the group. Most of them have two main things in common, they are skilled with a sewing machine and are part of a military family.

For the past six years, the Crafty Ladies have been making quilts for the Service Source organization, Veterans Mall. However, when the pandemic hit, they shifted their needle and thread to make masks for veterans.

“They had to sacrifice and people who had to sacrifice I want to help as much as I can,” said Nancy Barandon.

The Crafty Ladies said the best part is the camaraderie, working together on a project that could save lives.

“It does make us feel good to see people using them,” said Jeannie Powell.

NEW PORT RICHEY, FLA. (WFTS) — There are hairstyles, and then there is the mullet. Over the years it’s become a part of pop culture.

For Kayden Manning of New Port Richey, Florida, it's business in the front, party in the back, for nine-year-old Kayden Manning.

“When I went to school on the first day all my friends were saying, ‘I like the haircut’ and some were saying, ‘what happened to your head,'” said nine-year-old Kayden. “Not a lot of kids in my whole school have mullets.”

Kayden got the idea to grow the neck warmer from his own step-dad, Chris, who is in a mullet chat group with some of his friends.

“We hear nice mullet, sweet mullet, whether we are at the baseball field, or out at the beach, anywhere, everybody loves the mullet,” said Chris Brotherton.

Kayden’s family never thought their son’s Tennessee top hat would make him famous, until they discovered the website, mulletchamp.com.

“And I said, ‘wow those are some pretty good mullets I want mine to be like that,’” said Kayden.

Out of 500 entries in the kids' category, Kayden, with his signature American Flag look, found himself in the top 25. Now it’s up to the public to vote for the winner. The first prize receives $2,500.

“He’s such a sweet kid he said, ‘I’ll give you some,’ and I said, ‘no that’s your haircut, your mullet, that’s going right into your bank account,’” said Brotherton.

However, maintaining a championship mane isn’t all glitz and glamour.

“Sometimes my hair gets stuck to my neck but I’m fine with it, it doesn’t bother me,” said Kayden.

So what does mom think about all this?

“They both tried to convince me to cut my hair into a mullet, I’m not that far yet, but I like it on them,” said Brittany Hundertmark.

Kayden said he plans to rock the mullet for the rest of his life.

To vote for Kayden go to mulletchamp.com and click on his picture. Voting ends October 11.

“Vote for me Tampa Bay I got the winning mullet,” said Kayden.

This story was originally reported by Robert Boyd on ABCActionNews.com.

TAMPA, Fla. — As of Monday, more than 350,000 people have subscribed to the "Lionel B Show" on YouTube. The success has come after quite a climb for the star, who was living in his car with his teenage son just three years ago.

“There was one day I think we shared a Wawa cookie the entire day, just me and him, it was the hardest thing I ever went through,” Lionel Barnes said.

Barnes began posting videos documenting his daily struggles. What he lacked in money, he made up for in enthusiasm for the music industry. So he started his own show, talking about it.

“Let me do something I’ve never done, what do I mainly watch, I watch celebrity news, breaking news, trending news,” Barnes said.

He never imagined his opinion on a scuffle between rappers Jay-Z and Offsett would lead to thousands of fans. The views and comments started rolling in, which have now surpassed eight million.

“My heart was racing, it was unbelievable," Barnes said. "Every time I would refresh the screen it would go up another 10,000.”

Barnes soon started receiving checks from YouTube as "The Lionel B Show" became a hit.

“I heard of YouTubers making money, but I never dreamed this would happen to me,” Barnes said. “I knew at that point I could take care of my family.”

Barnes now has a roof over his head for himself and his two sons. His total views have grown to over 90 million. He said there is one fan particular fan that he could never thank enough.

“Unfortunately my mom did pass away in July 2020 of COVID-19,” Barnes said. “She was super proud of me because she saw me pick myself up and even gave me the nickname, 'Self-Made,' because I’m a self-made person. I didn’t ask anybody for anything. I just pulled myself up on my boot-straps and put it together.”

You can follow Lionel Barnes on most social media platforms @thelionelbshow.

This story was originally published by Robert Boyd on Scripps station WFTS in Tampa, Florida.