AKRON, Ohio -- A complete stranger set up an online fundraiser to try to save Coming Attractions Bridal and Formal from going out of business after Amber Vinson's Ebola scare daunted customers.

She had never shopped at Coming Attractions and she did not know the store owners, but when Terri Crispin of Munroe Falls heard that the Tallmadge Avenue store was closing she picked up the phone.

On the other end of the line was Anna Younker, who Thursday announced she was closing her doors this year, unable to shed the stigma of the Ebola scare. Younker protested the idea of asking for money.

"I said no, you know what, I'm not the type of person to ask for that type of help," Younker said. "I thought we'd get help otherwise, but she was so determined."

Crispin, who had watched some of the animal rescuers she volunteers to organize use the website, had already set up an account on GoFundMe.com.

"I was at work and heard some people talking about the store closing," Crispin said. "It really upset me."

By Thursday morning the account had already raised $750, and Younker said the City of Akron called her to offer some of its vacant property for relocation.

Younker doesn't know what exactly it would take to get the business up and running in another location. She said Thursday that she hadn't even had time to contemplate it.

"I never thought anyone would reach out to us like that," Younker said. "When you decide to close a business you don't really think about people giving you money to stay open."

Coming Attractions closed for three weeks in October and November, in the middle of her busiest season, after Vinson shopped for bridesmaid dresses there on a trip home from Dallas, where she worked as a nurse and contracted the Ebola virus.

She paid out of pocket to cover the cost of specialized ultraviolet decontamination.

It wasn't enough, though. Despite a highly publicized reopening ceremony and a 60-percent discount on dresses, many customers never returned. Some, with weddings approaching, canceled orders altogether.

The insurance company denied claims. Younker said they told her there was no virus present at the store.

Crispin, 51, had never shopped at the store but had followed the Ebola scare online. She remembers cruising with friends up Tallmadge Avenue, where the store now sits, to the A&W off Tallmadge Circle.

"I wasn't one of the people who jumped on the Amber Vinson hate wagon but I did find out that she asked for a refund and all her bridesmaids went elsewhere," Crispin said. "When I heard that I thought that was pretty classless."

A November letter sent by an attorney representing Vinson said that bridesmaids decided to shop for their dresses elsewhere and wanted a $479.89 refund.

Younker and her husband, who had been in business for 30 years, wanted to close as gracefully as possible. Sales would continue until the end of January, and all existing orders would be filled.

The owners aren't quite sure if they are ready to change their mind, but welcome a miracle.

"The main thing is we would have to relocate," Younker said. "I don't know if it could save us, but I would like to keep doing what I've been doing."

Crispin set a goal of $20,000 for the fundraiser, and said she hopes it will ease the pain of a small business that fell on the worst possible luck.

"(Younker) doesn't see that it's possible," Crispin said. "If it got to the point where she doesn't have to close that would be a beautiful ending to a sad story."