NEW ORLEANS — What do you do if you're new to this area, and want to go to a Mardi Gras ball, but don't have a long gown?
Well, two women decided that the men and women who serve in the military, and their spouses, needed a place to turn, without the burden of the high cost.
And now for years, they have been making dreams come true by saying yes to the dress.
“Beautiful! Look at that. Oh my word. Oh my God, Kathi. She is gorgeous. Oh my gosh. I love it. Are you saying yes to the dress,” Co-Chairwomen Char Wenrich and Kathi Callahan said about the way a dress looks on a young women.
For eight years now Char Wenrich and Kathi Callahan have been hard at work. They want to make sure that military wives, and women on active duty, get a chance to go to Mardi Gras and military balls. Gowns, and all the accessories, can get pricey, and out of reach. So, they started Operation Free Ball Gown.
“We're so appreciative of them. Like this, it's very humbling knowing that people in New Orleans, they’re so generous enough to go throughout their closets and donate all of these gorgeous gowns to us,” said Petty Officer Tammie Garcia, of the U.S. Navy, who is also volunteering with the group.
This week, they are sorting the 2,200 long and cocktail gowns and dresses, evening shoes, undergarments, and fashion jewelry, to be ready for the giveaway on Saturday in the gym, on the Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base in Belle Chasse.
“I ended up scoring myself, like a $400 gown. I just got it hemmed for like 50 bucks, but that was like amazing,” said Mariah Chairsell, the wife of a colonel.
And that Valentino designer cape dress goes for $7,500 to $13,000.
And there are more designer dress like Calvin Klein and a lot of dresses still have the tags on them and are brand new, donated by stores.
Members of the Krewe of Iris donated a lot this year, along with people, and stores. There are also donated wedding gowns.
“This gal she came out in this wedding gown. She looked just like a princess. She looked absolutely like Cinderella, and all of us just stopped in awe and she just started crying, because she knew that that was her dress,” said Callahan.
Kathi is fighting cancer, but still is here with Char carrying on their brainchild.
“When the doctors told me, 20 years ago, that I could not have children, I thought, ‘You know, God, there must be a reason.’ And the reason being that he wanted me to try to be a mother or to help our families,” said Callahan, with tears in her eyes.
And that is exactly what she is doing.
You can still donate dressy clothes, shoes, and jewelry for women, men, and children.
Donation drop off locations:
- Carr Drugs 91 Westbank Expy, Gretna
- Purple Tiger 3250 Severn Ave., Metairie
- Snap Realty 2625 Gen. Pershing St. New Orleans
- Shear Luxury 4001 Ge. De Gaulle Dr., Suite C, New Orleans
- Northshore Family Dental 2790 E. Gause Blvd., Slidell
E-mail: operationfreeballgown@gmail.com