MADISON HEIGHTS, Va. — Jaime Fitzgerald, a recent graduate of Amherst County High School and a member of Randolph Memorial Baptist Church in Madison Heights, realized many of the girls in the Appalachian town of Manchester, Ky., would be unable to afford a dress for the prom, so she made it her special mission to make their dreams come true.
Jaime Fitzgerald stands in the God’s Closet Ministry Center with some of the 178 prom dresses she collected for the students of Manchester.
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Jaime’s first visit to Manchester was during a Lynchburg Baptist Association mission trip there last July. She felt strongly God’s call to minister to the people in this community and she knew she would return in the future.
In November Jaime traveled with another team to Manchester; and it was then that she talked with Carol Bolin, a local pastor’s wife, about a prom dress ministry. She felt the Lord leading her to help teens attend their spring prom with just the right dresses and shoes and accessories to make them feel like a princess.
A recipient of a prom dress models her new look.
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In January, Jaime enlisted her friend, Beth Woerner, to help as they began collecting dresses. The first dress was purchased at Goodwill and the next 16 dresses from the YWCA. As news of the ministry spread, they found themselves overwhelmed with others who wanted to get involved. A local bridal store even donated several new dresses to the girls.
In late April, Jaime, along with her grandparents, Lincoln and Sterling Fitzgerald, and cousin, Megan Fitzgerald, packed a mini-van with 178 dresses, many pairs of shoes, along with some jewelry, and headed for Kentucky.
During their weekend stay, 33 girls were able to choose “just the right dress” for their high school prom. Jamie says, “This project really showed me that if I am willing to give completely of myself that the Lord will bless my efforts and bring glory to his name.”