by Tonya JohnsMatthew 5:1
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him,
2 and he began to teach them.
The Beatitudes
He said:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
It is my blessing and privilege to announce that on March 19, 2016, Epiphany Lutheran Church will host its 6th Operation Prom Dress. Yes, six years ago this ministry began in a few classrooms on the lower level of the Far Hills campus. We were blessed to serve 38 young ladies and their families that first year.
To tell the whole story, however, we have to go back to January 2000, when I was told that one young lady in our youth group would not be able to attend her prom because money was tight for her family. I quickly offered to chip in to buy this young lady a dress. Voila! Problem solved, right? Oh silly me. Little did I know that God had bigger and better plans, as He ALWAYS does! The very next day on my ride in to work I listened to KLOVE radio station, as I often do, and what do you know? A church in another state was going to host an event called Operation Prom Dress to provide dresses and accessories so girls who might not be able to attend prom could now attend without the worry of financial constraints. Of course I ran into work to share this exciting news with my friend and coworker, April Barrett. And that is when things became a whirlwind! April immediately said we should have something like that at Epiphany. As I often do, I doubted we could actually pull off some sort of event in just a few weeks. Thankfully, April had faith that we could make this happen if we went to work right away and — most importantly — trusted our Savior.
And that is just what we did! We quickly started getting the word out that we would be collecting special occasion dresses and accessories and oh my, did the community respond! As the dresses and accessories rolled in, so did donations from the community. Local businesses happily donated food and items for door prizes. We also had hair stylists and makeup artists volunteer their time to the young ladies who attended. That year we had one faithful volunteer do alterations on the spot! It was a beautiful day of pampering these young ladies and helping them understand our mission statement. At Epiphany Lutheran Church, We Love Jesus by Serving Others! At the end of that day we enjoyed lunch together and sent each young lady home with a bible. What began as a way to serve and love on these girls ended in every volunteer getting so much more back that we could ever give! Isn’t that just typical of what God can do when we let Him have control?
Fast forward to 2015. Last year, Operation Prom Dress served 189 young ladies the day of the event and many more in the weeks that followed. We went from a handful of volunteers and three racks of dresses that first year to 89 volunteers (just on the day of the event) and more dresses than I could ever count! We now have about 2,000 dresses and boxes upon boxes of shoes and accessories! Many of the young ladies we served that first year are now faithful volunteers. My heart is overjoyed by their love and commitment to pay it forward!
What can you do to help? I’m sure many of you are thinking “Oh, I can’t sew so I can’t help” or “I can’t do hair or makeup, so I can’t help”. I’m here to tell you that Operation Prom Dress truly is a ministry for EVERYONE! Could you help provide food to feed our guests a light breakfast and lunch? Every bag of salad and tray of cookies helps! Do you own a business that you could be a donor of a product for a door prize? Could you help purchase a dress in a special size? Many of girls wear a size 16-30 and dresses in that range are not plentiful. Since we run this ministry based off of donations, every dress donated is a blessing! Could you help us set up on the 17th from 5:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.? Many hands make light work! Could you make a financial donation? Even the smallest of donation helps to keep our ministry alive! Could you make time to pray for this ministry and our guests? Could you come in at the end of the event to help clean up before church service?
Of course we are already busy soliciting donations from our community, but every year our numbers have increased. After serving 189 young ladies and their special people who attend with them, we expect even more this year! This ministry has been committed to God, who does not disappoint! The sky is the limit and I and the faithful volunteers who serve in this ministry welcome that challenge. As we always do at Epiphany Lutheran Church, we welcome everyone! We encourage anyone who wants to be a part of Operation Prom Dress to register to attend on March 19 at our Far Hills Campus from 8 a.m.-1 p.m.
To sign up to volunteer or if you have any questions, you can reach me at tjohns@epiphanydayton.org or 937-750-6317. I appreciate your consideration in helping the young ladies of our community know that there is a God who loves them and a community who cares.
Serving Him with you,
Tonya Johns
I have read your entire article on Prom Dress.
I admit, I have never been there at that busy time, but I do have 1 question. Is there a corner or a rack that has any men’s suits / tuxedo’s? I know of someone that is looking to donate her husbands Tux’s and that is why I am asking.
By your article, it is strictly for young ladies, and no men’s clothes / tux’s, at all. No problem.
But she wanted me to ask. Thanks for your reply ahead of time.
Hi Bob, as the webmaster, I will pass your message on to Tonya. Thanks, Kathy