GE gearing up for 6th annual Fairy Godmother event

LYNN – For half a decade, volunteers from General Electric and across the community have stepped forward to help disadvantaged high school girls experience their dreams of attending the prom through the North Shore Fairy Godmother Project.Now in its sixth year, the project remains strong and has once again scheduled a day of browsing and beauty at the makeshift GE boutique on Saturday, April 5.Thanks to donations from local businesses and private residents, the North Shore Fairy Godmother project is able to offer hundreds of dresses, purses, shoes and other prom accessories to high school girls in Lynn and the surrounding area who otherwise could not afford to attend the prom.Qualified participants are invited to attend the one-day event and are assigned a “fairy godmother” who takes them around the GE boutique to help them pick out the perfect outfit for prom night.Students are also given a gift bag on their way out the door filled with small trinkets and gift certificates to local salons or stores to complete their prom night look.Donated from local bridal and formal shops, the gowns are either new or lightly worn, and all students who participate in the event are kept confidential if they may feel embarrassed.”Usually the biggest challenge is getting the girls to come out and see what we have,” said North Shore Fairy Godmother Project Board Member Mary J. Hargraves. “It is usually once the mothers or guardians learn about us that we start getting calls to make appointments.”Each student must make an appointment prior to the April 5 event, and must also provide some sort of documentation or reference from a school guidance councilor, teacher, DSS agent, doctor or other community member to confirm financial hardship.Along with various GE volunteer groups, the Fairy Godmother Program receives support and donations from several local businesses including Eastern Bank, Stop and Shop, Dunkin Donuts, Toomey’s Cleaners, Dress Barn, Johnnie’s Foodmaster, Robert’s Cleaners, Jack and Jill Hair Salon, Lord and Lady’s, Electric Insurance, The Ultimate, Bass River Inc., Maggie Sotten Design, International Apparel and Middlesex Mama’s.The project also accepts donations of clothing and money, which is used to organize and carry out the event, from private residents and other businesses. Donations can be made at any Fairy Godmother drop box, located at all Toomey’s and Robert’s cleaning locations on the North Shore, or by mailing to North Shore Fairy Godmother Project, P.O. Box 125, Nahant, MA, 01908.The boutique will be open for appointments on Saturday, April 5 from 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. at the GE building at 1000 Western Ave.For more information or to set up an appointment, call 781-594-1255 or email [email protected].