Project Prom, a program of the Allegheny County Department of Human Services, is now accepting donations of new and like-new formal attire in the first floor lobby of One Smithfield Street Downtown from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Formal wear, including dresses, must be clean and appropriate for current styles.  Formal wear includes gowns (if worn, please dry clean); accessories, including wraps, formal handbags, new hosiery and new makeup; formal prom shoes (silver, gold and black preferred); and jewelry (new or gently worn). All earrings must be unused and in their original packaging.

Project Prom also accepts monetary donations to help with the cost of tuxedo rentals and shipping and for dresses in hard-to-find sizes. Checks can be written to the “DHS Donations Fund” and mailed to: Project Prom, One Smithfield Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, with “Project Prom” in the memo line.

Project Prom, started in 2003, provides free dresses and formal wear to high school seniors who live in Allegheny County and who meet the following criteria:

• have a caretaker receiving unemployment benefits;
• receive or be eligible to receive a free school lunch; or
• receive services or have a family member receiving services currently through the Allegheny County Department of Human Services.

“If you have a prom dress that you no longer need, rather than letting it hang in the back of your closet, you could donate it to Project Prom,” said project manager Ondréa Burton in a press release. “Prom is an expensive evening, and your generosity may make it possible for a young lady to attend that special night she might otherwise miss.”

For more information about how to donate, call 412-350-3428 and leave a message.

For more information about Project Prom, visit www.alleghenycounty.us/dhs/projectprom.aspx.