Donuts & Dresses – A Sweet Time for the Entire School Community
Written by: Ashley Johnson,Kelsey Koeneman
Picture this: it’s a warm spring day and students are beginning to dream of prom. How do you know that they are beginning to think of this so many months in advance? The evidence is right in front of you. They are already shopping, hoping for a great deal, even when they are supposed to be typing a research paper. In 2022, Ashley Johnson and I hosted our first-ever annual Donuts & Dresses event, and the idea came to us after I experienced this situation in my own classroom. Instead of being upset by the distraction, I decided to dig a little deeper and use this as a moment to connect with this particular student. This was easy to do, as I was currently storing a bridesmaid’s dress that looked exactly like the one on her webpage.
We talked briefly about prom and more on the financial pressures her parents felt as they had more than one daughter in high school prepping for the upcoming prom. I mentioned I would happily give her the dress I had in storage so that she didn’t have to worry about bargain hunting. Naturally, she declined and said she couldn’t take MY dress. I insisted, after all, who really wears a bridesmaid dress a second time?
Voila! The initial spark was lit for creating this opportunity for more students. Many amazing organizations already exist in order to help students have the opportunity to feel beautiful in a prom dress. However, these events are not often accessible to rural students without access to a vehicle or the money it takes to drive 45 minutes away in the hopes of finding something they want. Ashley and I have put in a ton of work to create this guide to help you start an event like this at your own school.
Step 1: Gather Supplies
For our first event, and all of the events since, Ashley and I put out digital flyers on all of our social media pages.
We also give a brief description of the event and its goals:
Goal 1: Help every girl find a beautiful dress to wear
Goal 2: Alleviate other expenses so that every student can have a memorable evening
Goal 3: Raise funds and items for students in need at all grade levels
Example flyer:
In the initial year, we received an incredible response. I posted from multiple accounts and platforms, and so did Ashley. We also sent out an email of the flyer with a slight adjustment to all of the people who work in our school. We ended up having teachers and other faculty bringing us dresses that belonged to them, their grown children, and their family friends every day.
Most people are holding on to those dresses for the memories and because they seem too expensive or sentimental to donate. However, once people realized that their dresses could make another person feel as special as they once helped them to feel, they are much happier to contribute to the cause. Offering to go pick them up is the cherry on top of taking these space-takers off their hands.
With snow days all around and spring cleaning on the horizon, now is the perfect time to get the word out that you are looking for formalwear donations. Other donations we get include: restaurant gift certificates for pre-prom meals, certificates to order corsages and boutonnieres, certificates for hair and makeup services, jewelry, a certificate for car detailing and more.
Step 2: Plan the Event
For every canned food item or $1 donated to our school food pantry, students receive a ticket that they can use for a number of different things at the event.
- A donut
- A dress
- A tie or bowtie
- A coupon for $5 off a prom ticket
- A chance at donated gift cards and prizes
In preparation for the event, we make our signs, tickets, and coupons. We also order the donuts (we order ours from our cafeteria for a great price).
Step 3: Advertise the Event
Canva is a great resource for making beautiful flyers to help get the word out for the event. The impact is made more meaningful by the number of people donating. Definitely have your school’s social media post about the event so that parents and community members can encourage attendance.
Example Flyer:
Step 4 Host the Event
You can try to get donations of desserts or a reward of some kind for students to attend. For our event, we have the cafeteria make the donuts. The more students who attend, the better for our collections, and the more likely our students will feel less self-conscious about their participation.
Step 5: Donate Collected Items and Money to the School Food Pantry
After the event is over, our group will take the donated money and food items to the school food pantry or care closet.
Statistics from years past:
|
2024 |
22 gently used dresses found new homes. 16 ties found homes. We collected $269 and 160 food items. |
|
2023 |
20 gently used prom dresses found new homes at this event. The event also collected 160 food items and $140 for the DHS Food Pantry. |
|
2022 |
We didn’t keep track because we had no idea what a success it would be. We were running around like crazy trying to help students and collect goods. |
All in all, this event is incredibly special because it helps so many of our students. Whether they benefit from receiving a prom dress, donut, coupon or prize, or they receive food from our pantry, this event really incorporates a large population of our student body. It has become a staple event that students look forward to each year. Plus, it really gets the excitement started for Prom in May!
Resources
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