Prom dress drive benefits foster girls

Colorful gowns made of sequins, satin, velvet and other luxurious fabrics are pouring in from across the state for the USM Student Associate of Student Social Workers prom dress drive.

The group has collected 275 dresses, and 100 more are being delivered.

The prom dress drive began five months ago when Tyleen Caffrey, a licensed social worker and Southern Miss graduate student, initiated a plan to collect enough prom dresses for girls in foster care in Hattiesburg and Meridian.

Caffrey spent her teenage years in foster care, and the experience helped her to identify prom dresses as a need for girls living with foster families.

"My foster mother made my dress, but I know not every child has that opportunity," she said.

Caffrey said the dresses the group has collected vary in style from vintage to contemporary and are from different decades.

"All the dresses we have come from individuals who have kept their dresses for sentimental reasons," Caffrey said. "This gives them good cause to give it to someone who needs it."

The Department of Human Services has made a list of girls interested in receiving a dress, but Caffrey said she may have more dresses than names and encourages girls who are interested in a dress to contact their social worker.

Caffrey has also recruited several beauty salons to donate their services to the girls on prom night.

About 3,446 children are in foster care in Mississippi, according to the Mississippi Department of Human Services.

"I'm extremely impressed by Ms. Caffrey's project for two main reasons: first, of course, because she's doing a wonderful thing on behalf of young women in the foster care system, but also because her work is a great example of what social work is all about - identify a human need, envision a solution and mobilize the resources to make it a reality," said Michael Forster, professor and director for the School of Social Work.

William Allred, a senior journalism major from Jackson, said he thinks the prom dress drive is a great idea. "I think it's nice," he said. "I think someone should do it. People that are less fortunate need someone to help them out. A little help is always warranted."

The last day to donate a prom dress is Tuesday. They will be distributed at DHS offices Feb. 15-16 and Feb. 18.

For more information on how to donate, call Tyleen Caffrey at 601.310.3881.