MEMPHIS, Tenn.– A Rhodes College student and her family are desperately seeking answers after a special delivery never made it to campus.
A dress to some is just a piece of clothing, but in this case, it’s a family heirloom, now possibly gone forever.
This photo is a moment Rhodes College freshman Nola Palomar will never forget. It was taken 12 days before her father died from brain cancer in 2018.
Her mother, Mrs. Palomar, says her dad helped her pick out a blue chiffon dress for her 9th-grade prom experience.
“He told me that he may not ever be able to buy her a wedding dress but he did want to buy her a beautiful prom dress,” she said.
Nola went on to wear the dress again for her senior prom and was hoping to wear it again two weeks ago for a formal at Rhodes.
“It literally made me feel like a princess whenever I wore it,” Nola said.
Her sister back at her home in Ohio sent the dress priority mail through the U.S. Postal Service in a distinctly marked box, but it never arrived.
“It’s really unfortunate because it’s one of the last things that I have significant memories with my father,” Nola said.
Her mother said after reaching out to USPS, she learned the dress wasn’t delivered to the campus mailroom at 2000 North Parkway but instead to the wrong address a postal clerk keyed in on the label, 200 East Parkway North.
Where she said it was left at the front doors of First Baptist church on a Saturday.
“It’s in plain view for anybody to see. Why don’t you just leave the sticker on the door? Is it laziness that you just don’t care,” Mrs. Palomar said. “I think people see a package laying out unattended and it’s an invitation for theft.”
A pastor at the church told WREG they haven’t seen the package but at least once a week they receive mail for Rhodes students, which Mrs. Palomar says is unacceptable.
“I want them to be responsible. I want them to be accountable for what they’ve done. This was purely a series of errors,”
The family said they have reopened their claim with USPS.
We did reach out to USPS about the matter and were told they are looking into our request.
If you have any information about Nola’s missing dress, you can contact the family at nola.palomar@yahoo.com.
