Anna's Closet

There is something fantastic when tragedy leads to triumph, when grief gives way to hope. In 2005 a young girl who was a junior at my daughter's high school was killed in a car accident, her name was Anna. A story was passed on to Anna's mom about a girl who borrowed a dress for a formal from Anna. The orange dress looked fantastic on the underclassman, and Anna insisted she keep it. Her generous spirit lives on in a fundraiser called Anna's Closet.

Throughout the year, the committee requests donations of dresses from girls at other schools, celebrities and alumni. All the dresses are sold at a one day sale for $10 each. The money raised goes to Emmanuel Center in Memphis to buy books for their after school program and the dresses that don't sell will be donated to the Center so that girls who might not be able to afford a dress for Prom can have one.

What a great idea. Most Prom dresses are a wear once and done type of purchase. Teenage girls seem to think that everyone remembers what they wore last year. I can't remember what I wore last week! This year they have hundreds of dresses. For $10 each, a girl could buy a few to hold on to for the next couple of events. Some of the dresses still have price tags on them! Who does that? Buys something and never wears it? Me? Oh yea, maybe once (or twice). Even a former Miss Georgia donated a few dresses. Can you imagine buying a pageant dress for $10?

So naturally, in the planning meetings for this fundraiser, someone mentions they need cookies and before you can say "Boo!" someone I gave birth to said "My mom will bake the cookies". I love that kid. She sends me a text on Monday that says" I need 200 cookies for Saturday". Of course I said "No problem". Then she says "Could you make them cute like dresses, shoes, purses?" So that is what I have been up to for the last 3 days! I am a little short, only about 185 cookies, but they are so much fun to decorate.

If time weren't such a factor, they would be full of little details, clasps on the purses, multiple colors on the shoes, maybe some leopard print heels. I also usually have a little more time to fulfill an order. But we do have cookies.
Blue stars which is the mascot for our school (yes, odd mascot, I agree there, Go Stars!),
Hearts to remind us of the friendships that are forged in high school.
Shoes because they can cost as much as the dress, and are usually taken off as soon as the pictures are taken!
Purses because they carry all the important things. Digital camera so you can get the pictures on Facebook by breakfast, lip gloss, cell phone in case things take a turn for the worse you can text your girlfriends, and cash. I once took a taxi home from a formal dance. You just never know.
And of course orange gowns. Because that's what Anna left behind.