Prom dress giveaway set for March 9

Every teenage girl deserves to feel like a princess at her prom. Altrusa International of Akron makes sure they do — without having to worry about the cost. On March 9, the organization is holding its Princess Night Project prom dress "shopping" spree for all girls 16 and older in Northeast Ohio in need of a prom dress. No information or pre-registration is needed. Girls only need to show up and provide the name of their school and how they heard of the event. In exchange, girls are able to choose one formal or semiformal gown and complimentary accessories, including shoes, jewelry and a clutch. Who needs a fairy godmother? "We have close to 2,000 dresses in size 00 to 28," said Linda Rittenour, service chair of Altrusa International of Akron and chair of the Prom Dress Giveaway. "A store in Summit Mall closed this year and donated more than 500 new dresses and I was able to apply for, and received, a grant to purchase a number of plus size dresses. All of the other dresses are donated through the community." Last year, 270 girls from 80 high schools received dresses that would make Cinderella envious. And they were given the royal treatment with a personal shopper helping them to find the perfect dress, which they are able to try on in one of 24 dressing rooms before looking for jewelry, a clutch, and those important glass slippers. Each year, it is a mystery as to how many girls will show up, but Rittenour hopes for a high turnout. "It's a great club and being able to reach out into the community is rewarding," the 12-year volunteer said. "There are lots of happy tears. We have single moms come in and say they have two daughters going to prom and they couldn't afford it if it wasn't for this." Since 2001, more than 2,400 girls have found their prom dress through the Princess Night Project. In addition to the prom dress giveaway, Altrusa is also active with other programs to benefit teens and young people in the community, such as Helping Hands, which works with various agencies to provide starter kits for those coming out of shelters with dishes, bedding and other necessities for starting a new home; partnering with Haven of Rest Ministries in Akron to distribute books to children during the agency's summer picnic; and working with Harmony House to provide Christmas baskets to teens coming out of the foster care program. Altrusa is collecting dresses, jewelry, shoes and clutches through March 2. Call (330) 338-3378 or (330) 309-6399 to donate. All donations are tax deductible. "We're really in need of dressy shoes, jewelry and evening bags," Rittenour said. "Not everyone may have prom dresses hanging around in their closets, but they may have dress shoes that they aren't going to wear anymore." Rittenour has contacted numerous high school counselors throughout Northeast Ohio and the Akron Public Schools has posted information about the event on its website and on social media, but she hopes to make even more dreams come true. "You've heard the expression, 'It takes a village,'" Rittenour said. "It takes a community to do this program. Without the community, we couldn't do this." Contact Christina Jolliffe at ctnews@chroniclet.com.