Giving Gown Foundation: Gifting a Prom Experience and More

Most little girls dream about going to their prom someday . . . descending a set of stairs with everyone looking up in awe . . . twirling in a fancy dress, sparkling jewelry, and cute shoes. The Giving Gown Foundation and generous Houstonians have been sharing their gently-loved gowns to help make that fairytale come true for teen girls for over a decade. 

A Prom Boutique Fairy Godmother zooms in on the beautiful smile of a teen she was lucky enough to help find the perfect dress.

The Giving Gown Foundation began in 2008 to provide a prom boutique experience for girls who faced challenging financial circumstances. The project, which initially provided dresses for 85 teen girls, has grown into an annual event that reaches 1200-1500 attendees. The Giving Gown Foundation collects donations of new and like-new formal gowns and accessories and provides them free of charge to high school girls.

“Giving Gown believes every teenage girl deserves to feel loved and celebrated just for being who she is - no strings attached,” shared Bobbi Jo Miller, Giving Gown President. “We realize that different life experiences often make it difficult for a family to afford the extras, and Giving Gown wants to help.” 

Bobbi Jo continued, “On Boutique Days each young lady is paired with a fairy godmother who guides her in choosing a gown, shoes, and jewelry for her special day. The girls also receive swag bags of goodies, a lovely lunch in the Boutique Day Café, and attend an empowerment workshop where they learn about real beauty. These precious girls come for a dress but leave with so much more! We believe in empowering girls, one dress at a time.”

The boutique serves teens across Houston including Buzz-area high schools like DeBakey, Lamar, Kinder Houston School for Performing and Visual Arts, Bellaire, and Carnegie Vanguard. 

Prom Boutique visitors celebrate during an Empowerment Workshop where they learn the tools to feel beautiful and worthy every day, not just at prom.

In 2019, The Giving Gown Foundation began fulfilling additional fairy tales by awarding scholarship grants to Houston area teen girls for college, university or trade school, and is excited about the ways the program will empower the girls and make lifelong impacts. To date they have gifted over $19,000. 

One of the 2021 scholarship recipients was teen vocal sensation Sarah Grace Kimberly, who appeared on Season 15 of The Voice. A graduate of Kinder HSPVA, she gushed, “I absolutely love the Giving Gown Foundation. Being awarded the scholarship was more than a check. It is a whole team of people that believe in me and want to invest in my future. They still send me postcards of encouragement.” Sarah Grace is now a student at the University of Houston. 

Serena Hou, a 2021 graduate of Bellaire High School, shared, “I am so grateful to have received this scholarship from an organization that is so local to me. For many families, it is a struggle to afford a college education. Especially because I attend a private school [Emory University], any help with tuition helps. The Giving Gown provides prom dresses to girls in financial need but has expanded to offering scholarships in order to pursue higher education. I am honored to be chosen as one of the recipients of this scholarship and would like to encourage more girls to explore this experience.”

Serena continued, “I think that it is really inspirational that Giving Gown provides girls with the opportunity to feel their best on one of the most special days of their high school career.”

The 2023 Giving Gown Foundation scholarship will open in the fall.

A prom princess is assisted on her mission to see if her perfect dress is in the pink section.  

This year’s Giving Gown Prom Boutique will take place March 26-April 2. Houston-area high school junior and senior girls are welcome to register. Space is limited. Visit the Giving Gown website for full details and registration links.

The Giving Gown Foundation welcomes dress and accessory donations year-round. In addition to ball gowns, Giving Gown is in need of dress shoes, accessories, handbags, formal jumpsuits, and women's tuxedos. Plus-size gowns are especially needed. 

Donations can be dropped off at Bammel Church of Christ (2700 Cypress Creek Pkwy., Houston, TX 77068) during church office hours. Gowns, shoes, and accessories are accepted year-round. In addition, Giving Gown has a partnership with Tide Dry Cleaners in which dresses can be dropped off at all Houston locations where they will be dry-cleaned and then delivered to Giving Gown. Many of the stores also take shoes and purses. Please call ahead to confirm what they are accepting. Find details here. 

Volunteers are appreciated. Seamstresses, bakers, organizers, or people with good smiles welcome. Registration required. See more details here and email [email protected] with questions.