Volunteering is good for the soul– and I found an organization that helps offer highschool girls a night they will never forget. It’s called, The Glass Slipper Project. The Glass Slipper Project is a non-profit organization that gives away free prom dresses and accessories to high school Juniors and Seniors in the Chicagoland and surrounding areas. The Glass Slipper Project collects new and almost-new formal dresses and accessories and provides them, free of charge, to students who are unable to purchase their own prom attire.
I was really thrilled to be a part of such a great cause this year. Hundreds of girls arrived at McCorkle School at 4421 S. State Street this past Saturday in the hopes they’d find their dream dress for this year 
Prom. The Glass Slipper Project set up an elaborate “boutique” at the abandon high school– separating prom dresses in different classrooms by size. Other rooms were dedicated to makeup, accessories, shoes, and jewelry. Some girls started lining up at 9am and weren’t leaving until 3pm with their prom dress in hand… that’s how many girls their were! But, with so many great volunteers, we helped each and every girl find their perfect dress.
So, first things first! We volunteers stood in a line in order to get matched up with an excited teenager who’s there to find her dress. I started out by introducing myself to the young teen, and finding out their dress size. Then the two of us (sometimes they had their mom’s with them, too) 
would head to the room filled with their sized dresses, and it was off to the races. One girl insisted on a “hot pink” dress…. so we searched and searched! Finally she found her favorite– then it was time to pick out matching shoes. She wore size 11, but guess what?! There are SO many shoes to choose from she managed to find her size in the right color, too. After choosing her shoes, we marched over to the room filled with jewelry. Lia Sophia, an amazing jewelry company, were some of the many who donated oodles jewelry for the girls to choose from. Once you choose your dress, shoes, and jewelry you are almost done…. but not until you swing into the accessories room to find a purse, or a shawl. The Glass Slipper Project even has a room filled with brand new makeup for the girls to take.
No girl leaves empty-handed, that’s for sure. In fact, it’s the complete opposite! Each girls walks out of the boutique 
READY for prom night. Another cool thing for the girls is later posting their photo to The Glass Slipper Project’s website. That way, we can all see how beautiful they looked on their prom night.
I coupled The Glass Slipper Project and my New Years Resolution of “52 Bags In 52 Weeks” challenge (where I donate 1 bag of stuff per week to a good cause) together this weekend, and CLEANED OUT my closet! I donated 4 pairs of high-heels that I never wear, along with dressy pieces of jewelry. I even went to Walgreens and purchased some makeup to donate for the girls.
Another bonus while I was there…. the 2011 “Miss Illinois USA”, Chicago native Angie Sparrow was there checking out the event. Of course I asked her for a quick photo and she was happy to accommodate. She was SO tall as you can see in the pic….. and I’m 5’7″!!
If you are interested in donating your time to help make a girls’ dream come true for prom this year– The Glass Slipper Project has one more boutique open this year on April 16th. You can sign up really easy on their website here: Volunteer Sign-Up. I promise, you will have such an amazing experience. Check out the video below for a really great story on The Glass Slipper Project.