SEMO Prom Mothers gearing up for prom season 2025

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KFVS) - Prom season is quickly approaching, and while it’s a time for big excitement, it can also leave parents worrying how they’ll foot the bill for the dress.

A local chapter of nonprofit Becca’s Closet is ready to step in to meet the need.

SEMO Prom Mothers takes dress donations from the community, giving young ladies their dream dress and parents' wallets a break.

They operate out of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Cape Girardeau.

Ellen Gurnon said the work is about more than pretty dresses.

“Belonging is so important to teens, and this helps them to feel like they belong when they can go to prom and be dressed like everybody else.”

Brenda Randolph said when a girl finds her perfect dress, it’s obvious to everyone standing nearby.

“Sometimes it takes two or three or four or five dresses, but when it’s right, they know it, and we know it, and we’re always so thrilled when they make the decision.”

The group serves local students throughout the year, not just during prom season. During the 2023-24 school year, Randolph said they helped more than 300 girls.

“I just had a lady call me today...and she said they drove over from Poplar Bluff and she said her daughter got a wonderful dress last year, and she wanted to come back and bring it back.”

Randolph said she told the woman the newest chapter of Becca’s Closet in Alton, Missouri may be closer, but the woman insisted.

“She said, ‘No, we want to come to you, and we want to bring the dress back, and we want to pay it forward and get another one.’”

SEMO Prom Mothers also accepts jewelry, shoes and other accessories.

To drop off a donation, stop by Westminster Presbyterian Church on Perryville Road in Cape.

Office hours are 8 a.m. to noon Monday through Thursday. Donations can also be dropped off during a fitting appointment.

Book a fitting now through the group’s Facebook page.

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