Spring will soon be on its wBay, and that means the arrival of prom season. The spirits of high school juniors and seniors are high, but so is the cost of attending the prom. When the price of a ticket, a dress or suit, shoes, a bag, hair, and makeup are combined, it can break a teen’s or parent’s budget.
Lori King of the West Clinton Mennonite Church near Wauseon has a solution. The “Beauty Comes from the Heart” Prom Open House and Charity Fundraiser will be held for the second year in a row at the church on March 14 from 3:30pm to 7:30 pm and on Saturday, March 15 from 10:00am to 4:00pm at the West Clinton Mennonite Church on the corners of County Road C and County Road 18, Wauseon, Ohio.
There are over 90 gently used, and some new, prom dresses available for a donation. Shoes and bags are also available, with some jewelry and wraps also on hand. Young women can learn hair and makeup tips as well, and there will be booths where they can receive instructions, and also learn about doing their nails.
The idea for this event came about when Lori’s niece was selling the popular Jamberry Nails, and wished to get the product to teen girls for their proms. Although these will not be a feature of this year’s event, Lori still wanted to do something for the young ladies for prom. She found out that the church had done a prom dress donation event a few years earlier, and many of the dresses were still available. The church gave all of the over-100 dresses to Lori for her event. Last year, sixteen girls participated and received twelve of the dresses with the young women paying only what they could afford to donate. This year, King has had more publicity, and has contacted schools in the four county area, as well as schools in Michigan that border the northwestern counties.
Lori, a mother of three grown sons, has a heart for the young women, and wanted to make sure that no young lady missed prom because she could not afford to spend a lot of money for their prom. She said that in addition to learning how to style their hair and do their makeup and nails, they can learn how to craft pieces for their hair and clips to decorate their shoes. They will also have prom magazines and hair style magazines on hand. Cosmetic samples such as lipstick and teeth whitening products are also being provided. So far, they have only one suit available for a young man, but hope to have more suits donated for the future. King can receive donations of clean, stylish dresses, suits, shoes, and any other items such as jewelry and purses up until Wednesday. This will give helpers a chance to steam the dresses. King has received help from the women in her church’s Bible study, as well as from other women in the church.
All money donations from the prom event will go to the Dow Family Children’s Home of Litein, Kenya. This is a home run by a husband and wife team from Pennsylvania who sold their belongings to open a children’s home in Kenya. They take in abused, abandoned, and orphaned children where they live in dorms, and have their own school. Presently, they have 58 children. Lori’s son stayed at the children’s home for over a week during a mission trip to Africa, and this mission is close to his heart. Money donations for this cause can be donated now through the end of the event. Lori King can be contacted at 419-445-1285.
All young women from the area are welcome to attend this prom event open house and fundraiser. There are dresses of all sizes available to those who need one for prom. King hopes to make this an annual event. Not only can they participate in a worthwhile cause and get to shine at their prom, but they will be able to donate to a wonderful charity.