Stamford High senior Jeremy Young wants to help fundraise money for a free prom for all students who qualify for free and reduced lunch. He has an excellent idea to not only fundraise money to give these students free prom, but also to get them free dresses and tuxedos. He wants continue with fundraising at restaurants, working the concession stands at sporting events, and find other ways to help fundraise for prom. To make it even better, he wants to reach out to big organizations and foundations in Stamford to ask for donations.

To get students dresses and tuxedos, Young plans to work with the Cinderella Project. The Cinderella Project helps students who cannot afford prom dresses. He has reached out to Holly Hyman who runs the Cinderella Project, and she would love to help coordinate dress donations.

Along with the dress donations from the Cinderella Project, Young wants to partner with local tuxedo rental shops for free/reduced cost rentals for all students who cannot afford to buy one. In exchange for this, we could encourage Stamford students to get their rentals at these participating shops and advertise these shops at school events to increase their business. For tuxedos that the shops can’t provide, we’re hoping to collect donations to get enough for students who can’t afford them.

Young’s hope is that this won’t just be a one-year project. Ideally, the Free Prom Project will continue for every senior class after the Class of 2022. The ultimate goal is that Stamford High seniors never have to worry about affording prom again. To ensure this goal will be met, Young says he will set up a process for fundraising that can be replicated by future Stamford High classes. 

Young emphasized that in order for this to happen, everyone needs to help out and contribute. This truly is a team effort. If you would like to make any donations, including dresses and tuxedos, please reach out to Young at his email address: [email protected].