x
Breaking News
More () »

King's College collecting prom dresses ahead of giveaway

King's College is helping to fill the gap after the community lost a beloved dress sale. Now the organizers of Damsel in a Dress need your gently loved gowns.

WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Prom season is just around the corner.

A college in Luzerne County wants to help students feel like a million bucks on their special night, without the hefty price tag.

This room on the campus of King's College in Wilkes-Barre has turned into storage space for all of these formal gowns. 

Last October, the non-profit, Cinderella's Closet said farewell after 10 years of providing low-cost dresses to young girls going to prom or formal. which gave Jill Elston an idea. 

"I messaged them and said, I was sad to see it go and what could I do to help, and it snowballed from there," said Jill Elston, mailroom supervisor for King's College.

"That was definitely disappointing that it closed and we know people are in need, so at King's College, we want to do a lot of things that provide a service and this was an opportunity for us to do so," said Sheryl Ish, Associate Vice President of Athletics for King's College. 

That's how Damsel in A Dress was born.

So far, more than 230 gowns have been donated.  The college is looking to collect even more ahead of its giveaway on Sunday, March 17th. 

"It's not just for proms, we have gowns for commencement balls, we had a few donations of maybe mother-of-the-bride gowns and a couple of bridal gowns even," said Elston. 

The college is also collecting dress shoes and other accessories, all to give out for free.

"We know that during these times people are making decisions on what they can spend their money on, and we did not want cost to be a factor. We want someone to be able to get a great dress. Look beautiful and enjoy their night," said Ish. 

If you have some dresses taking up space in your closet, King's College has a few drop-off locations if you are interested in donating. 

 If you're looking to browse the racks, the giveaway will be Sunday, March 17th at the King's College Campus Center from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. 

Before You Leave, Check This Out