In 2009, the Community Council, a group that works to increase self-confidence and esteem in young women, created Prom Dresses with a Purpose, a drive that aimed to collect prom dresses. The drive raised over 1,000 dresses for high school girls. Since 2009, over 3,000 high school girls have been helped.
Prom Dresses with a Purpose’s success sparked The Cinderella Project, which helps Metro St. Louis area high school junior and senior girls who are unable to acquire a prom dress on their own. Counselors refer students to the Cinderella Project.
The Cinderella Project teamed up nationally with Donatemydress.org, a campaign with Seventeen Magazine that encourages girls to donate their gently used prom and special occasion dresses to those who need them, in 2010. Due to their success, the Metro St. Louis chapter of the Cinderella Project was given the Purple Dress Award. Only thirteen other dress projects were awarded this nationwide.
In 2012 alone, the Cinderella Project reached 150 girls from the metro area. These 150 girls received a free gown, along with alterations, hair styles and makeovers the day of prom. This year, over 200 girls have been referred by their schools.
Very Important Prom-Goers (VIPs) are given the first selection of dresses before stores are made open to the public. Short gowns may be purchased for $29 and long formals for $39. The opening day, “Pink Saturday,” typically starts with hundreds of girls lined up outside of the boutique. “Pink Saturday” is March 9. The Cinderella Project boutique is located at Mid Rivers Mall in St. Peters.
The Cinderella Project provided dresses and prom-day makeovers for multiple Parkway West juniors and seniors.
“My favorite part was getting to try on any dress to see which one I liked best. It made me feel like a princess,” senior Camari Shannon said.
Shannon’s dress was fitted and tailored. In addition, Cinderella Project candidates were given the opportunity to pick out jewelry and purses from a wide selection provided.
“It was a lot of fun and really exciting because this is my senior prom and I felt the energy. The people working could not have been any nicer; they really made it a great experience,” Shannon said.
![Alongside club sponsors Andrea Horn and Tim Burkard, assistant principal Kate Piffel prompts a discussion at the first Black Student Union (BSU) meeting. She accepted suggestions for BSU from members like BSU Leader and junior Tanatswa Zirengani, who moved from Zimbabwe in 2021. “Moving here and transitioning into a new school [and] lifestyle, [BSU] became [a place] where I could be myself and talk about issues that I felt comfortable talking about back home. BSU [also] gave me the opportunity to venture into the post-high-school experience, telling me [some] things to expect,” Zirengani said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/DSC_0120-1-1200x800.jpg)
![Junior TJ Polack plays his saxophone solo at halftime for the 2024 marching band show, ‘Coloring Book.’ This year, Polack was one of two soloists in the marching band. “[Polack] is very hard on himself. [His saxophone solo] sounds amazing [and] everyone [cheers] for him; [still], somehow, he thinks it’s a bad performance and he's down. What he does is not easy. It takes a lot of confidence as a person [and] a lot of musical skill to be expressive, and he's doing an amazing job,” drum major and senior Dominic Perez said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/462488499_2973926416100522_5057718068659607183_n-1200x925.jpg)
![Sophomore Isaiah Meese smiles after his Eagle Scout Ceremony. Meese has participated in the scouting program since first grade, learning new aspects of life and growing a community of a second family. “I almost didn’t do [boy scouting], but I'm glad I eventually did start doing it. I regret that I wasn't [working towards Eagle Scout during COVID]. It might not always seem like the most rewarding thing, but if you put your time into it, there's a good chance you'll get quite a lot out of it: friends, new activities and hobbies, or just more experience,” Meese said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/IMG_1004-1200x800.jpg)
![Junior Justin Lutz arranges his collection of basketball sports cards. Lutz started his first hand at entrepreneurship with an online store on eBay, dealing and trading in the sports card market. “I was already collecting sports cards [before], so I knew a lot of these players and I understood the market. I ventured into other sports, but I really stayed with the ones that I knew the most, [like] basketball. It’s really important to focus on what you know because it's so much easier than starting completely from scratch in a market that you don't understand. Find something that you're interested in," Lutz said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Untitled-design-2.png)
![Standing in front of the American Sign Language program’s mural, junior Brooke Hoenecke signs with freshman Darren Young. Hoenecke began cadet teaching for ASL this year alongside working towards earning her seal of biliteracy. “I was in ASL class when I received the email [that I qualified for the seal]. I was jumping up and down with my teacher and the rest of the class. One of the reasons why I took cadet teaching this year was so that I could prepare for the Seal of Biliteracy and be immersed in ASL,” Hoenecke said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/hoenecke.jpeg)
![With a keen eye for detail, senior Natalie Lashly writes her signature onto the senior hand wall. After some encouragement from her friends, Lashly applied to make the hand wall with her Lorax-inspired design. "I thought the [bright] colors would be fun. Our quote on the wall is 'Let us grow,’ based on the 'Let it grow' song [from the movie]. [I was hoping that the design would] make the cafeteria feel more exciting," Lashly said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/DSC_0099-1200x801.jpg)
![Walking onto the field, freshman Erastus Adewusi wears a pink jersey in remembrance of cancer awareness month. With the number seven on his jersey, Adewusi reflects on his life in Nigeria before moving to America. “I [used to wake up] at 5:30 a.m. and school would end at 5 p.m. [versus] now,” Adewusi said.](https://pwestpathfinder.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/DSC_0029-1200x800.jpg)