Words and Photography by Sarah Jane Sanders<\/strong><\/p>\n The greatest gift you can give someone is the gift of time\u2026<\/i><\/p>\n Hauling large Tupperware bins of wedding gowns, suits, rings and decorations to Northwest Haiti, bridal shop owner of 40 years Diane Cornelius gives couples, far too poor to afford a wedding of their own, a rare and precious gift: a wedding day. Most Haitian families live in common-law marriages, some for over 25 years, simply because of the expense a ceremony would incur. They usually have several children and are forced to survive on less than a dollar a day. It\u2019s a daily reality that parents must often choose which child will not eat. But in this culture, a chance at marriage brings with it a sense of pride within their community and allows both bride and groom to be accepted as family and receive an inheritance. Once married, a younger woman will be treated with respect, and a middle-aged woman can now be called Madame<\/i>.<\/p>\n