The Magic of Cinderella’s Closet

Cinderella’s Closet is an organization that works to provide prom dresses for individuals that may not be able to afford or acquire their own dress. These dresses are collected throughout the year, and then individuals in need have the opportunity to ‘shop’ for a dress that they would want to wear. The closet is run all around the United States and is often held in public high schools across the country. Pennridge High School has its own Cinderella’s Closet program which is run by Rachel Hoffmann, one of the school’s family and consumer science teachers, along with Pennridge students who volunteer their time. The members of the club find dresses from dress stores, and they are also given new dresses as donations. They are often able to buy or retrieve dresses at dress stores for a much lower price than they were sold the previous year.

When asked about her favorite part of the program, Hoffmann stated that “just being able to allow students to feel excited in getting a new dress” is her favorite thing. Instead of getting ‘hand me down’ dresses, the leaders of the organization do their best to get brand new dresses for the individuals that need them. A majority of prom dresses are extremely expensive in this time period, and being able to give them out for free helps a good amount of people. Chloe Maialetti, a student volunteer for the organization, says “I find satisfaction in helping others; it brings me joy. It impacts me because I get to give back to people in my community.”

Not only does Cinderella’s closet provide dresses for those in need, they provide other accessories as well. Shoes, makeup, bags, and jewelry are all provided for those who need them. There are fundraisers that take place worldwide to raise money for Cinderella’s Closet. The money that is raised goes to the closet so they are able to acquire more dresses and accessories. Even larger organizations such as Claire’s help sponsor the events. “Making prom dreams come true” is Claire’s slogan for the events. These fundraisers help bring awareness and recognition to the club so they can help more and more people across the world. At Pennridge, they do smaller things to get the word out. Hoffmann says that they use the “ramble, key club advertisements, word of mouth, and display” to advertise to those in need along with those who want to volunteer. The goal of Cinderella’s Closet is to make sure that every student feels special on their big day and that they are able to wear a dress that they cherish and feel beautiful in.