GLOSS: The Fashion Magazine

Credit:Dale Ziegler Photography (thecinderellaproject.com)

Fashion Conscientious:
A Fairy tale Born in British Columbia

Jennifer Watts

Still holding on to your digs from prom night? Is last spring’s bridesmaid’s gown or that holiday party dress collecting dust? Why not create a little extra closet space in the name of a good cause. The Cinderella Project, a federal charity founded in 1999 by Heather MacKenzie and Cheryl Otto, helps to put the magic back into the “once-upon-a-time” event of graduation.

Through sponsorship and community involvement, the project provides underprivileged high school graduates with formal wear to attend their prom night. The project mandate? “To remove social barriers and promote inclusiveness and diversity,” recognizing “outstanding young people who have succeeded in the face of overwhelming odds.”

In short, it’s about helping these incredible kids build self-confidence and instilling them with pride by giving them a hand up, not a handout. Close to half of the “Cinderellas and Cinderfellas” assisted by the project are either ill or physically or developmentally disabled. Many are from working families struggling to overcome adversity and to provide for their families in one of the country’s most expensive places to live.

Each spring, The Cinderella Project hosts its Boutique Day at the Vancouver Renaissance Hotel, where deserving students spend the day discussing their success and future goals with a “fairy godmother or godfather.” They are dressed from head to toe in gowns, tuxedos, shoes, makeup, and accessories, and sent home with goodie bags. Participants are referred to the project by school counsellors, teachers, principals, or social services agencies throughout the Lower Mainland.

To date, The Cinderella Project has helped hundreds, and has inspired similar projects in communities across the country and throughout the world. Interested in getting involved? The program is powered entirely by volunteers, so donating your time is always an excellent option. Involved in a business that might be able to help? The project has need for such services as transport and dry-cleaning, as well as for household items like mirrors and clothing racks. Donations of formal wear for young men and women, shoes, purses, accessories, and unused makeup and toiletries are needed from January through spring. Or donate cash online or by cheque throughout the year. Just think, a mere $200 will dress a graduate from head to toe, and will deliver the kind of “happily-ever-after” that will be remembered for a lifetime.