Well, it has been a while, but to say the least, we had an amazing Prom season this year.  It is August 2nd and we are in full swing as we plan Prom season 2011.  Let me share with you what has been going on this summer:

The greatest news we had was that the Westchester County Executive’s Office will be providing us storage space again this year at their Elmsford warehouse.  I expect we are going to use every inch of that warehouse as we continue to grow.

We booked our 5th Annual Fundraiser at the Radisson Hotel in New Rochelle for October 22nd.  The summer has been busy and going by fast – slow down, we need more time to plan!

We have two wonderful guest speakers for our October event.  New York State Assemblywoman of the 88th District, Amy R. Paulin, as well as Montefiore Hospital’s Child Life Specialist, Meghan Kelly.  We are truly honored and excited to have these women speak at our event.

We will begin to collect Prom dresses & tuxedo’s again in October.  So hold on to your dresses!  The great news is that we have added new drop off locations, including Rye, Bedford & Manhattan.  The locations will be added to our www.HelpPROM.org website shortly.

And finally, check out our national Operation PROM site, www.OperationPROM.org if you or someone you know would like to start an Operation PROM chapter, fill out the inquiry form to get the ball rolling!

Enjoy the rest of your summer!

Noel

When you think “Prom”, you probably think of senior year in high school.  For years I have tried to think of other markets or places where a Prom could be held.  Over a year ago I thought “a Prom in a hospital, there must be students who are sick that miss their Prom”.  I knew one day Operation PROM would have one.

In January, I received an email from Lindsay Davis, a Child Life Specialist at Montefiore Children’s Hospital in the Bronx.  “Perfect timing”, I thought.  The children in the oncology/hematology unit deserve to have their own Prom.  Some children have been battling life threatening illnesses for years. 

In April, I started bringing Prom dresses to the hospital.  The first time, I needed to take a deep breath.  I admit, I wanted to cry from the second I got to the 9th floor children’s unit.  But when the children saw me with Prom dresses in my arms, they were so happy that I just had to smile. 

The young ladies, 13 to about 18 years old, went through all the dresses, so excited to try them on.  From that day on, I went to the hospital every Friday to bring more dresses to fulfill some color and size requests.  I can tell you, it is not easy to fit a Prom dress to a young 13 year old who is connected to an IV for cancer treatment. 

There were several young men who needed tuxedos.  David from San Marko Formals in Yonkers met me on a Friday to size them for their tux’s.  Each and every tux was donated. 

On May 1st, the actual Prom event, myself and the Operation PROM volunteers arrived early to help the girls with make-up and getting ready.  Well, if you thought they were excited about dresses, you had to see them with make-up!  We put eyeshadow, eyeliner, lip gloss, and blush on all of the girls.  They felt fabulous!  We even applied make-up on some of the nurses!

The children walked onto a long red carpet filled with hospital paparazzi snapping their picture.  They danced for hours, hopefully forgetting that they were in a hospital cafeteria that was transformed into a glamorous Hollywood themed Prom.

Operation PROM will never forget this Prom.  We thank all who donated their time and services:

Life Cleaners, San Marko Formals, Alicia Rose Foundation, Value Drugs, KIM Media, Vita Chambers, and the Operation PROM volunteers: Susie, Lynn, Meggie, Erica & Ana.

Check out our media links:

http://www.nydailynews.com/ny_local/bronx/2010/05/02/2010-05-02_sick_youngsters_treated_to_prom.html

Montefiore Children\’s Hospital Prom

Public Service Announcement on behalf of Operation Prom: If you know of someone who is in need of a prom dress, the Operation Prom organization is available for one extra day, Saturday, April 3! Time: 1:30-3:30 Place: Hyatt Hotel 101 Corporate Drive White Plains, NY 10604 (off Westchester Ave) FREE new and gently used prom dresses available in limited sizes and quantities.

When I was a junior in college, I started an event planning business.  Part of my job was to find dresses for the bridal party.  I’ve been a bridesmaid 7 times, so I can tell you, you will NEVER wear that dress again.  At 23, I called my former high school, Saunders in Yonkers, and asked them if they would be interested in some bridesmaid dresses as Prom dresses.  I brought them 10 that year.

5 Prom seasons after that, this small operation I ran out of my house has become something I never even planned.  Operation PROM’s 6th Prom season is here, and our journey will never quite be done.  This year, we received 1,200+ donations.  Our partnership with Westchester  County has not only provided us with storage for these dresses, but the support that we truly needed to reach more students.

“Prep for Prom” was truly successful because of our passionate volunteers from the Department of Social Services (Team Linda Sala), the wonderful women of the LINKS organization (Team Patsy Morton), and of course the dedicated powerhouses of Operation PROM:  Susie, Marie, Amy, Joy & Heidi.

We were so grateful for all of the dress drives this year from Ardsley High School, Tuckahoe High School, Club Fit, Swiss Re, Heineken, Westchester Community College, 57 Grand, Bloomingdale’s, and so many other groups and individuals who reached into their closets!  Follia Bridal Salon in White Plains donated over 200 brand new bridesmaid dresses too!

Of course these dresses needed to be dry cleaned, and thanks to Ross at Life Cleaners in Yonkers, they were – for free!

Try moving 1000+ dresses!  Well, we were fortunate to have Smart Move in Yonkers donate their moving services to get these dresses to the Hyatt in White Plains.

The Hyatt manager Christopher Powers donated the venue and a dozen guestrooms as dressing rooms for all of the students.  Not only was the space ideal, but the entire staff was friendly and extremely helpful.  Oh, and the girls were so excited to be trying on Prom dresses in big hotel suites!

We were also fortunate to have David from San Marko Formals in Yonkers provide low cost tuxedos for the young men going to the Prom. 

And, every student went home with a gift bag (all of the gift bags were filled by the awesome mentee’s from Her Honor Mentoring).  There were CD’s from upcoming artists, Maybelline cosmetics, College of Westchester calendars & so much more!

Thank you to the Hyatt, Follia Bridal Salon, College of Westchester, Salon POSH, Maybelline, Nicholas Day Spa, Fontana’s, Heineken (Health Alliance on Alcohol), Life Cleaners, San Marko, Smart Move, and everyone else who contributed.  P.S. those fabulous Operation PROM t-shirt’s worn by the volunteers were donated by Jeff from Ideal Promotions.

“Volunteers aren’t paid, not because they are worthless, but because they are priceless”.  Anonymous

- Noel

News clip:  Prep for Prom

Prep for Prom was a huge success today!  Check out our media coverage:  Prep for Prom

Our Journey to the Prom is in full effect now that Tuesday is Operation PROM’s “Prep for Prom” event.  Along with Westchester County’s Department of Social Services, we have been preparing for this event for months! 

The Hyatt Summerfield Suites is where the event is being held, and we’re basically taking over the hotel with over 1,00 Prom dresses to be distributed out that day!  The hotel has been extremly accomodating and the conference rooms are just perfect for this type of event.  We’re really looking forward to making some Prom dreams come true!

The Hyatt Summerfield Suites is located at:

101 Corporate Park Drive, White Plains, NY 10604 / Tel: 914 251 9700

Talk about trendy!  I went there for a haircut last week and not only did I feel comfortable, but I felt like I was hanging out with my girlfriends.  Salon Posh owner, Diane Cermele, and I chatted over Lady Gaga playing in the background.  Can you say fabulous?  Well, not only is she fabulous, but she is generous.  Diane and her crew are sponsors for Operation PROM”s “Prep for Prom” event.  Not only will they be offering half off Prom up-do’s (with coupon), but they are giving back to those students in need in their community.  Some Mamaroneck HS students attending “Prep for Prom” will have their hair done free of charge! 

In September 2009, owner Diane Cermele opened Salon POSH.  Cermele has 10 years of training and work experience with the best of Manhattan, as well as elite salons in the Westchester area.  Cermele rooted back to her community of Harrison, worked at 4 different salons where she came across her present staff.   Together, Diane and her best friends are proud to say, “Salon POSH is their home, and where dreams were made.”   At Salon Posh their mission is “to offer the clients incredible service by top stylists in a POSH environment.   Best of all, services are all at an affordable price.”  Services at Salon POSH include, unisex precision cuts, creative color & highlights, corrective color, Keratin & Brazilian hair straightening, Bridal services, special occasion hair with the added amenity of on-call make up artists. Cermele is certified with Socap hair extensions, one of the biggest hair distributors world wide.  Salon POSH is open, Tuesday 10-6, Wednesday 10-6, Thursday 12-8, Friday 10-6, and Saturday 9-5 and located at:

516 W Boston Post Road, Mamaroneck, NY 10543 (914) 899-3333

Check out details at DailyCandy.com:  http://www.dailycandy.com/new-york/article/80999/NYC-Events-and-Diversions