Atlanta police help girls say yes to the perfect prom dress

ATLANTA — Prom season is upon us and for many teens across that metro, it’s a mad rush to find that perfect outfit for prom night.

For many though, that perfect dress will likely cost a lot of money they may not necessarily have to spend.

The Atlanta Police Department has stepped in to help. The department's Police Athletic League sponsored a prom dress drive, asking officers and their public partner to donate new and gently worn prom dresses, so that deserving teens will get the chance to go to prom without the pressure of how to pay for it.

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"We know prom is a big event for the young ladies and we wanted to make sure they were able to go and take some of the stress off of the cost for them," said retired police Maj. Kimberly Payne. "We reached out to our APD family, as well as the community.”

The drive collected more than 100 dresses, shoes and accessories from officers and city of Atlanta employees.

"We're hoping that the young ladies can find a complete ensemble or at least one item to help them with going to the prom," Payne said.

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Monday evening, 11 girls from three different Atlanta Public Schools met with female officers from around the department that helped them pick out their dresses and then helped with fitting the girls.

One of the lucky recipients was Takaya Brantley, 17. This year will be her first prom. She picked out a red dress along with silver shoes and a match clutch purse.

She said she was so grateful for the program.

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"It made me feel good knowing that someone is giving back to the community," Takaya said.

Her mother, Tarnesha Taliaferro, said she searched online for dresses for her daughter and said the cheapest dress she could find was at least $200. Add that with accessories, make up and everything else that goes along with going to prom, she said this program as a real blessing for her and her daughter.

"I felt blessed that we were chosen to come and participate in something like this. This is a true blessing," Taliaferro said. "I was like, 'Lord, I'm going to trust in you to fix it,' and he fixed it."

The Police Athletic League's ongoing efforts are a way for the department to connect with the city's youth in a positive manner, serving as leaders and mentors through recreational activities.

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"We have a lot of activities that reach out to young men, the older boys. But not that many activities where we can actually bridge a gap with young ladies. So, this is one way to open that door, to get them in, so that we can kind of connect and build a rapport with our teens and maybe start an opportunity to mentor with them," Payne said.

Atlanta police said with the success they had with the drive, they were going to open the program to all high school girls that go to any Atlanta Public School.

They said the girls can stop by from 4 p.m. – 6 p.m. Tuesday through Friday this week at the Police Athletic League’s location at 120 Anderson Avenue NW.

They will also accept any donations of clean prom dresses and accessories during that time for anyone who would like to donate.

Cox Media Group