Sanger graduate offers up way to help eliminate that prom dress, financial stress

Finding the right prom dress can be stressful.

And finding the right prom dress at the right price only adds to the anxiety leading up to the annual end-of-school-year high school bash.

That’s why one recent graduate is offering up her prom dresses of the past as a loaner.

In a popular social media post, Mariah Torres, a 2021 Sanger High graduate, expressed her willingness to help others looking to go to the prom by offering up her collection of eight formal dresses, which range from sizes 0-2.

The cost is free. Torres will even take care of the dry cleaning.

She just asks that those who borrow one of her dresses returns it in a timely manner. She also is willing to sell a dress at a low price to someone who wants to make alterations.

“Not everyone has the means to spend a lot of money on a dress for one night,” said Torres, who is wrapping up her first year at Clovis Community College. “But everyone deserves to feel beautiful if they’re going to prom.”

Torres, 19, actually has been lending her formalwear for the past three years.

Torres said she was inspired to share out dresses after a shopping spree with her mom that didn’t go exactly as planned.

Searching for elegant formalwear together was supposed to be such a joyous mother-daughter moment.

Instead, it became filled with stress and guilt.

Torres liked certain dresses but they turned out to be more expensive than what her mom wanted to spend.

“Seeing dresses that were like $200-$300 over budget, I’d see that look on her face,” Torres said. “She wanted me to have a good time and to like what I wore to prom. But she was also torn about putting that money toward bills or something else that lasted more than one night then stays in my closet like forever.”

Somehow, Torres did manage to find a way to get the dress she wanted, whether it be by her mom stretching her budget or other relatives chipping in (before Torres eventually got a job and helped cover the cost).

“I was fortunate,” Torres said. “Not everyone has that. That’s why I wanted to do what I could to help others with their prom costs. Especially in these times when prices for everything seem so high.”

Torres’ prom post became so popular on social media, others started messaging her and commenting how they wanted to lend out their dresses to those in need, too, to offer other styles and sizes.

Of all people, it actually was Torres’ mom who initially did not approve of Torres sharing out her dresses to strangers.

“You know, I think she was just remembering how much they cost and she didn’t want them to get ruined,” Torres said. “When I told her how appreciative the other girls were, she realized she really liked the idea.

“And honestly, it makes me feel good knowing I’m helping someone save money and look confident at their prom.

This story was originally published May 6, 2022 at 5:00 AM.