A prom dress raffle and giveaway take place at Wenatchee’s Pybus Public Market on May 18 to help provide girls with dresses that they would not have been able to afford due to the expensive demands of prom.

From noon to 4 p.m., free prom dresses will be raffled off and given away, in addition to corsages donated by Full Bloom. All the dresses provided are by donation and have been collected at the Brad Huddle Allstate office. The only requirement to receive a dress is a valid photo student ID card.

Freshman Melanie Fryhover says that it’s a good idea. “If someone really wanted to go to prom but they couldn’t afford it, it gives them the opportunity to look nice,” she said.

This year’s prom will take place at Town Toyota Center on May 31 from 9 p.m. to midnight.

The founder of this event is the Junior Service League of Wenatchee, a nonprofit organization whose goal is to improve the community with the help of their volunteers. JSLW is made up exclusively of female members and the organization mainly supports homeless women and children.

“We do this to fulfill girls’ prom dreams,” JSLW president Cori Bautista said. ‘It helps them get the dress of their dreams.”

Even the guys experience the costly demand of going to prom. “I think what [the Junior Service League of Wenatchee] is doing is something unique,” senior Tucker Reid said. “A lot of times, girls are restricted because of the amount of money they have — trying to get a nice dress, trying to get nice clothes — they aren’t able to pay. The price is up there: even I feel the pressure, trying to get a tuxedo overcoat [for prom]. I really think [the giveaway] is giving girls a valid chance.”

Prom is supposed to be a fun night with friends and hopefully a night to remember without the thought of expenses.

On average, a dress can cost anywhere from $100 to thousands of dollars, and then alongside that is the cost of tickets, dinner, photographs, and possibly alternate transportation. According to USA Today, prom night usually costs somewhere around $400 and up.

“[The giveaway] is awesome,” sophomore Lexie Batman said. “Prom dresses are expensive and it gives girls who normally wouldn’t go a chance to go.”