KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — For many girls, special occasions are something they dream about. They look forward to dressing up and impressing people. However, those dreams can be out of reach for many people.
A program wants to make sure they have the chance to feel like a princess at no cost, and with no burden to their families. It does not matter if it's for prom or any other special occasion. Girls that participate in the program will feel special on that day.
"You'll get to look through the dresses and have free control of what you want," said Celesta Lagares, an organizer of the program. "Try on as many dresses as you want to feel like Cinderella."
The program is in Jefferson City, and the women behind it offer hundreds of dresses and shoes for people to try on. It is all free, according to organizers.
"It's always been very hard to find dresses at a reasonable price for us. So, when we heard there was a place that helped girls get dresses for formals, proms, weddings — that was very helpful," said Maura Huggins, who stopped by Cinderella's Closet for a dress. "The standards keep getting higher and higher, and you just don't feel comfortable because you don't feel like anybody is catering to your specific body size and needs."
Organizers said they believe their role is as a fairy godmother. They work to guarantee people feel special when they stop by Cinderella's Closet and make sure they don't need to break the bank for the experience.
"I spent over $1,000 on a dress because of my size because they upcharge on plus size dresses and it is kind of sad," said Lagares.
Organizers said it helped more than 730 girls last year, helping people from Knoxville to North Carolina. Organizers said they helped people by appointment only. They can be reached by calling or texting 865-287-5118.