With prom quickly approaching, the desperate scramble to find the perfect dress has begun. However, not all parents are willing to break their bank and spend hundreds of dollars on their daughter’s “dream gown.” Organizations around the country have started to help girls get a beautiful dress without spending the money.

“Everyone should feel like a princess on prom night,” Becca Meyer ‘15 said, “Even though some people can’t afford the most expensive dresses they shouldn’t have to feel self-conscious because of that.”

Radio station Z 102.9 has worked to localize one of these organizations. Gown Town is an event held at Westdale Mall in Cedar Rapids, where girls are welcome to attend in order to look through a wide selection of prom necessities. Listeners are encouraged to donate used dresses, shoes, and accessories to be provided at this event. This year, over 700 dresses of all styles and sizes were donated for girls to choose from.

“I found it as a good way to get a prom dress without paying any money because my parents wanted me to pay for prom but I wasn’t able to,” Cora Bern-Klug ‘15 said. “I don’t have a job or money.”

DonateMyDress.org is another organization providing a place to receive and donate secondhand formal wear nationwide. For girls looking to receive a dress, the website offers names of organizations where they can pick one up. It offers the same information for girls that are looking to donate, as well as names and addresses of organizations that accept dresses via mail.

“I think it’s a really nice thing that they do because a lot of people don’t have the resources to buy their own prom dress,” Bern-Klug said. “The nice ones are really expensive, so I think it is a practical and helpful mission that they are pursuing.”