The Prom Project, now in its sixth year, seeks to make a prince or princess out of each student by offering free dresses and suits in time for the big dance.
Clothing is important to teens, and the price of a ball gown or tuxedo is often out of reach, according to Monica Campos-Sanchez, who heads up Providing Accessible Clothing to Teens in Fillmore.
“We live in a society, which is sad, where what you wear, how you wear it and how you present yourself can be such a big reason for bullying. It is important for everybody to have a nice dress,” she said. “Some of these families barely make $14,000 to $15,000 a year. They can’t afford a $300 dress.”
Nancy Rodriguez, a local radio reporter, has spearheaded the collection of dresses from across Ventura County for the past six years. She said response has been good this year, with dresses being donated by students at California Lutheran University and 12 coming from Wisteria Bridal in Thousand Oaks.