SEMO Prom Mothers provides free formal dresses to local teens
FOX23 News at 9 p.m.
CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) — Racks of formal gowns, shoes and jewelry fill rooms in Cape Girardeau, but volunteers with SEMO Prom Mothers say what they provide goes far beyond an outfit for one night.
The volunteer-run program provides free formal and semi-formal dresses to girls in financial need for prom, homecoming, winter balls and other school-sponsored events.
SEMO Prom Mothers is a local chapter of the national nonprofit Becca’s Closet and operates through First Presbyterian Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church in Cape Girardeau.
Brenda Randolph, coordinator of SEMO Prom Mothers, said the local chapter began in 2017.
“We are a chapter of the national nonprofit,” Randolph said. “Becca’s Closet was founded by a family who lost their daughter, and they were from Florida in the early 2000s. And she had started networking, getting girls in need, financial need, prom dresses and school event dresses. And so we picked up the chapter in 2017.”
The program was previously based in Jackson before moving to Cape Girardeau in 2020.
Rev. Ellen Gurnon, a pastor at First Presbyterian and Westminster Presbyterian churches, said the space and volunteer base have continued to grow.
“It’s amazing how much this space has grown and improved,” Gurnon said. “Just the number of dresses and the way that this space looks like a real store and looks so professional, has been amazing.”
Gurnon said the program has more volunteers than nearly any other program shared by the churches, with volunteers coming from both congregations and from outside the churches.
Program records show that growth has also translated into thousands of dresses finding new homes.
SEMO Prom Mothers distributed 75 dresses during its first recorded season in 2016-17. Annual totals later climbed to a total of 198 in 2021-22, 258 in 2022-23, 305 in 2023-24, 314 in 2024-25 and 260 in 2025-26.
The organization’s records show 2,064 dresses had been distributed through the end of the 2025-26 season. Another 69 semi-formal, homecoming and spring-fling dresses have already been distributed during the 2026-27 season, according to the latest numbers provided by the program.
“The community has been so responsive,” Randolph said. “We get dresses in and we get dresses going out.”
Although the program is intended for girls in financial need, organizers do not require families to submit financial records or other proof of income.
Students must instead show a school ID, online school portal or another form of verification showing they are enrolled in a high school educational program. Homeschooled students are also eligible.
Donations of dresses, heels, jewelry and money are accepted, but are not required from the girls receiving clothing.
“Donations are accepted but not expected,” Randolph said.
The Cape Noon Optimist Club also makes donations to the program and works closely with SEMO Prom Mothers, according to organizers. Acee’s also supported the organization through its charity-of-the-month program, selecting SEMO Prom Mothers as its charity for August.
Volunteers inspect donated dresses before they reach the racks. Randolph said dresses are laundered and checked for stains, rips and whether the styles are still appropriate for students.
The program now has two rooms filled with semi-formal and formal gowns.
That surplus has even allowed the Cape Girardeau chapter to help another Becca’s Closet chapter in the Ozarks, where Randolph said girls have fewer nearby options for obtaining formalwear.
“We have been able to expand and open up another chapter, help sponsor another chapter over in the Ozarks that’s probably more in need than here,” Randolph said.
She said some of the most memorable moments come from mothers watching their daughters find dresses, particularly mothers who tell volunteers they were unable to attend their own school dances because their families could not afford formalwear.
SEMO Prom Mothers operates by appointment only.
Students register for appointments online. During its active season, appointments are offered on Tuesday afternoons and evenings, Saturdays and Sundays. The program has four dressing rooms and schedules four girls at a time.
Each student receives one hour to shop for a dress and accessories and is asked to bring no more than one adult with her.
The program remains open through much of the fall season before taking a break around the holidays. It reopens after the new year for winter balls and basketball homecomings, then closes briefly in mid-February while volunteers transition the inventory for spring and prom season.
Randolph said one of the program’s biggest needs is simply making sure students know the resource exists.
“Every year it’s a new crop of girls coming in as freshmen, and they may not have heard about the program,” Randolph said. “And so getting the word out that we are available for those in need.”
Gurnon said a dress can affect far more than one evening.
“I think it’s important for people to know that we’re not just providing a fancy dress and fancy, you know, jewelry, shoes. For one occasion,” Gurnon said. “We’re providing something a whole lot deeper than that that could last for years. And that’s boosting a girl’s self-esteem and giving them a chance to feel like they belong and can participate in events like this and don’t have to stay away because they don’t have the money or don’t have the clothes to go and do that.”
“So that’s really the mission behind the fancy dresses that you see,” Gurnon said.
Appointments and donations
SEMO Prom Mothers is located at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 1820 Perryville Road in Cape Girardeau.
Appointments must be scheduled in advance.
- Facebook: SEMO Prom Mothers
- Website:Becca’s Closet
- Appointment registration: SEMO Prom Mothers Appointments
People interested in donating can give new or gently worn formal or semi-formal dresses, heels, jewelry or monetary donations. Organizers also encourage families with dresses remaining in their closets from previous school years to consider donating them.
