Lehman High School life skills students (back row left to right) Weston Pekar, Tristan Bourgeous, Alex Ramirez, Ricky Martinez; (middle row) Paul Ytuarte, Frankie Martinez, Alex Parra, and Kate Antoun and (front) Justine Dorris and Juanita Santos run Cinderella’s Closet, helping students find prom attire. (Photo by Kim Hilsenbeck)
by KIM HILSENBECK
Red, royal blue, hot pink, green and purple. These are not colors of the rainbow — they are just some of the colors of prom dresses available in Cinderella’s Closet at Lehman High School.
With some new dresses costing upwards of $200, purchasing one can create a dent in a family’s budget, according to Katherine Antoun, a Leh-man High School life skills instructional aide who runs the closet.
“The fun and memories of attending prom should be available to everyone,” Antoun said.
That’s where Cinderella’s Closet comes in.
The in-school “store,” staffed by Antoun and the life skills students at Lehman High School, offers prom dress rentals at no cost to Hays CISD students who want to attend their junior and senior proms.
“Young ladies from any of our high schools can shop in the closet,” Antoun said.
The Closet is a small rectangular-shaped former storage room life skills students transformed into a chic store, complete with clothing racks, decorations, mirrors and a private changing area.
Antoun said the kids set up the shop the way they wanted. She said being involved also helps them understand more about running a business.
“Working here helps us with people skills and interaction,” said Paul Ytuarte a senior in the life skills class.
For Alex Parra, a senior, he enjoys helping out. “And I like the girls,” he said with a shy grin.
Junior Juanita Santos said, “I like the shoes.”
Sometimes, she even gets to try them on.
For the past four years, Cinderella’s Closet has opened during prom preparation season to help young women— about 50 last year — find the perfect dress. They can also find shoes and accessories to match.
And while the selection is limited, the closet also offers men’s suits and other items. Antoun said Special Occasions tuxedo rental in San Marcos also helps the cause with several tuxedos for the guys.
The girls’ dresses and menswear are donated by staff, students, parents and local clothing stores. She has plenty of dresses size 2 to 16 but said she would love to see more larger dresses, size 18 and above, on the racks.
Her wish list also includes dry cleaning services; Cinderella’s Closet does not require students to have the items they rent cleaned prior to returning them, but Antoun said her budget for such services is very small.
Cinderella’s Closet, located in Lehman High School’s B200, is open during lunch each weekday from 11:05 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and after school by appointment. The store will be open through May 4, the day before Lehman’s prom. The Hays High School prom is March 24.
Contact Katherine Antoun at [email protected] for more information or to schedule an appointment.
