With a little over a month until May, prom season is in full swing. For most girls, this means preparing for limos, scheduling hair and nail appointments and most importantly, finding the perfect dress.

But in these tough economic times, many families cannot find a way to finance all the luxuries that come with the prom experience. This is where Belle of the Ball steps in.

For the past seven years this non-profit organization, partnered with Jordan’s Furniture and Anton’s Cleaners, has been helping junior and senior girls find dresses and other accessories, who otherwise wouldn’t be able to attend their proms. Last year, Belle of the Ball successfully outfitted over 395 girls.

For the past couple weeks, senior Sami Spielman, creator of the WHS Fashion Club, has been collecting dresses from students at the high school in support of this event.

“Fashion and philanthropy may seem to be an unlikely pair, but when combined, they can become a catalyst for helping others,” said Spielman. “Club members rally around supporting charities in need of apparel. Contributing to Belle of the Ball seemed like the perfect drive to participate in.”

Dresses and donations are collected at both Anton’s Cleaners and Jordan’s Furniture stores. All of the gowns are cleaned by Anton’s, free of charge.

Gowns are then brought to Simmons College Holmes Sports Center, which will be transformed in a boutique. Girls will look around with a personal shopper to find the perfect dress. Jewelry, corsages, perfume and salon gift certificates will be raffled off throughout the day.

These boutique days allow girls the opportunity for individual attention when it comes to them picking out the right dress, an experience which junior Antonia Vitagliano describes as “one of the most exciting parts of prom.”

“Every girl should be able to have the experience of wearing a beautiful dress to prom,” she said. “It shouldn’t just be girls that are fortunate enough to spend money on a dress. Everyone should have that opportunity.”

You can contribute donate your gently worn, trendy prom dresses to the rack in the WHS office lobby by Friday, March 25th. To find out more about donating a dress or getting a gown, email Samantha Spielman at [email protected] or click here.