Spokane7
35°
February 4, 2010 in Washington Voices
Spokane woman doles out donated attire for proms, parties
Sandi McKinley, right, and her daughter Kendall are collecting new and nearly new formal dresses and accessories for girls who cannot afford dresses for their proms and other events. They have collected 200 dresses so far and have 300 to 400 requests.
(Full-size photo)
Sandi McKinley isn’t a fairy godmother, but when formal gowns will be needed for special occasions, be it prom, Sweet 16 parties, homecoming, father/daughter dances or musical recitals, many Spokane and North Idaho residents will believe McKinley and her 13-year-old daughter, Kendall, are the next best thing.
With prom season gearing up, McKinley will be working hard to answer the prayers of cash-strapped parents who want their daughters to have a memorable evening.
Her efforts started five months ago when Kendall McKinley, a freshman at Gonzaga Preparatory School, went prom dress shopping with a friend. “They were around $800,” she said. “I was shocked.” When Kendall mentioned this to her mom, Sandi began thinking.
“We live in a nice neighborhood and Kendall gets to go to a great school and she’s very privileged with the things she gets but what about those who aren’t in such good situations and have fathers who are unemployed or moms who are sick,” said Sandi, who has a keen understanding of the latter.
“I’ve been through chemotherapy,” she said. “It’s been a really long journey. I think I’ll be OK but in the meantime, I want to do something meaningful.”
For Sandi, her prom, wedding and her daughter’s birth are “the things I hold near and dear to my heart” and, as with all who learn to appreciate life through the prism of illness, she wants to make dreams come true.
She discovered DonateMyDress.org, an organization that collects and distributes gently used formal wear to those who have a Cinderella dream but live on a chamber maid’s budget. It also provides a directory of donated-dress collection groups across the country.
“I looked up our region on the Web site and there was nothing,” she said. Soon, she found her niche; providing free formal attire to those who need it.
Next, Sandi called Spokane and North Idaho school counselors, churches and youth programs and told them of her plan. She went to local bridal and formal wear shops and purchased dresses that might need bead work or new tulle, which she repairs or replaces. The gowns were cleaned and the task of numbering and compiling accessories began. “Shoes, purses, jewelry, undergarments, hoop skirts, nail polish, sample perfumes, gloves, tiaras, barrettes, we need it all,” she said.
To date, 200 beautiful gowns hang on racks in the McKinleys’ living room, but the requests far exceed the available items. “We have 300 to 400 requests,” Sandi said. “I was definitely going toward the special-needs kids and then I realized every family has a situation, whether their dad is unemployed or maybe both parents are working but the added expense is still too much.”
She is adamant about the simplicity of her goal. “I don’t want this to be about money. I don’t want it to be based on anything. I just want to know a little bit about what their situation is either from them or a school counselor. Then I’ll tell them I have some beautiful dresses, free of charge. I just want someone to come in, find something, feel good about it, and have a really nice prom or whatever the occasion.”
And when the perfect dress is found? “It’s like a princess moment,” she said.
“They say, ‘This is the one,’ ” her daughter Kendall added.
“They can tell when they hit the right dress,” Sandi said. “They might try on five others but they’ll go back to that dress every time.”
Some might think supplying free formal wear is the epitome of a fairy godmother, but this Cinderella dream team wants more. Future plans include offering coupons to Glen Dow Academy of Hair Design, a professional photographer, corsages and dry cleaning services, but for now, with 200 dresses and 400 requests, the McKinleys need a miracle.
“We want to get the word out that if anyone has bridesmaid, prom or any formal dresses at all, we’ll take it,” Sandi said. And for those who have special memories tied to their dress, Sandi has a plan. “I’ll e-mail them a picture of the girl who gets their dress.”
“Or they’ll write a thank-you letter,” Kendall said.
“Yes,” Sandi said. “I want to make sure they write a little something to that person. So while they’re downstairs choosing a dress, I’ll have paper there and they can write it. I’ll make sure they get it.”
With a pensive look, Sandi eyed the racks of gowns. “I want to make sure I have enough dresses,” she said. “That’s a super scary feeling.” Kendall reached across and hugged her mom.
“This is a project of love,” Sandi said looking at her daughter.
“And we really need dresses,” Kendall added with a smile.
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Shaggy on February 12 at 6:03 p.m.
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panda on May 17 at 6:44 a.m.
Who I’d Like to Meet–- Whould be someone to hear about my befor prom nightmare. This is in hopes that their wont be another girl full of worry and tears. This hapened to me because i trusted Sandi Mckenly who runs a donatemydress shop in Spokane WA. The funny thing is at first i thought she was my lifew saver. ––––––––––––––––––––—Background: I have been on walfare since i was born up antill i got married. Them a month later in March my mother stoped getting support for me from walfare. My husband and i are only 18 and still need help to support our selfs so we live at his parents and my mother still trys to help with my school expences. Such as PROM. I dont want the School to know im married because i want my doploma to reflech my madden name and theirs nothing wrong with that. I was also afraid that if i told the school i moved they would make me transfer schools. That is why all my school stuff has my mothers adress.––––––Ok so i got her name and an idea of what her program was from a friend. So i decited to call her. Come to find out she could help me. She tells me all the things her program offers.( A dress, some jewlry, makup, shoose, profesional photos, and an up doo at glendales school.) The only thing that i was unconftable with was that this dress program is ran out of her home. This was a little spooky for me. She told me to tell any needy friends of mine about her program. So i did and i brought a friend this helped cool the jiters to going into a strangers home.––––––––––––––––––––––We got there and were welcomed in, wrote a note of thanks to her sponsers (on this sheet she had us wright out adress this was a school related thing so i put down my mothers adress), befor she brought the dresses she asked me why my grandmother didnt give me a ride. I told her she was resting. Then she said dose your grandma even care about you going to prom. This was upseting i told her yes she dose care she has just been runing around the last cople days and she has diabedes and shes tired. Then she began to bring us dresses. Tons and tons of dresses. We spent four hours of trying on dresses and getting the prices rubbed in our faces a little. I axidently brok a dresses zipper and i felt bad about it, then i told her that i did, and she said “great thats $20 to get fixed”. This made me go from fealing bad to horable so i chose to take the dress i broke. At the end she gave us both two dresses. One for prom and one for graduation. She also gave us heals, jewlry, nail polish, tester makup, hair charms and the profesion photos, up doo at glendales. I was exited, she fallowed us out to our vihical were my husban had been siting in for four because she said no guys are alowed in her home. She told him that were both were leaving here with over a thousand dollers each in stuff.–-The next day i told two other of my friend that were needy of her program. Then the following day they called her.–-The first friend that called her was _#1_. Her parents business was hit hard from the the downed economy and her mother had to take a second job. ___home phone is her parents business line so she is not under any serconmstance alowed to give it out. ___ tryed to tell Sandi but she didnt want to hear it. __ tryed to offer solutions like letting her go home and have her mother call Sandi. Sandi told her thats not good anuf she couldnt trust __ that it was her mother she was speaking to. So ___ tryed to offer another solution, one were she gets a letter from her councler that showes her financhal statas. This was also not good anuf she wanted to speak to her mother right then no mater what. __ gave up and when she was finished talking with Sandi she begain to cry profusaly…. TO READ THE FULL STORY GO TO http://www.myspace.com/panda_leo_love_bitch (pleas exuse my ULR)