18 dresses, 18 years of love: a father's touching tradition for his daughter

USA - A loving father surprised his daughter every year with a new dress for the holidays. The unveiling has now become an integral part of the festivities.

Ava and Mark Mabry continue the sweet tradition every year.
Ava and Mark Mabry continue the sweet tradition every year.  © Screensahot/TikTok/@avalivsmusic

Mark Mabry isn't normally a big fan of traditions, but there's one he can't do without.

As People reports, Mark's parents used to give his sisters a dress to wear every year.

When he and his wife welcomed their daughter Ava in 2006, he thought it would be fun to keep the tradition alive.

For Ava's first Christmas, he bought the now 18-year-old a red dress for her to wear to church. Since then, the proud father has set out on his own every year to find a new dress for his daughter.

This year too, Ava, who comes from the US state of Tennessee, was looking forward to showing off the new dress to her family.

"It's kind of fun because I don't know what I'm going to wear the next day," said the 18-year-old.

Millions of clicks on TikTok for Ava and Mark Mabry

Last year, Mark gave Ava a green dress with flowers.
Last year, Mark gave Ava a green dress with flowers.  © Screensahot/TikTok/@avalivsmusic

A year ago, when she got her 17th dress, they both decided to post a video on TikTok. It reached more than 2.8 million views.

She added: "It's funny because people have been leaving comments asking if there was ever a dress I hated. (...) I've definitely had dresses where I was like, 'This is so my dad's style, and it's not necessarily my style, but I love it because it's so my dad."

After the video went viral, Mark said he also took some time to read through the comments. Many of them broke his heart.

"Some of them say something like, 'My dad would never do that' or 'My dad won't even call me at Christmas' (...) If you have a dad who isn't that, it hurts and it's not fair. People deserve someone they can love," Mark said.

Every year he always gave Ava an accessory along with the dress. In the past, this has been a coat, a fishing hat or shoes. This year he surprised her with a pair of silver Coach shoes in addition to the dress.

The family kept all the dresses Mark had ever given his daughter. Her first, the red one, was recently framed. He said it was perhaps his only tradition and that he just loved her.