Business & Tech
Village Clothing Store Wants Your Prom Dresses
Omnibus Fashions is supporting the Christina Renna Foundation dress drive that aims to provide sick teens with prom attire at a special event this Spring.
A Babylon Village fashion shop is volunteering space, and management time, to helping a children's cancer research group effort to make sure teenage girls battling cancer look beautiful on prom night.
Omnibus Fashions is collecting donated prom dresses which will be worn by patients at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering’s Cancer Center Pediatrics' Spring Prom event. The dress drive is being spearheaded by the Christina Renna Foundation, based in Lindenhurst.
The foundation honors Christina Renna, a local teenager who died of soft tissue cancer in January 2007.
Find out what's happening in Babylon Villagefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Volunteers who would like to help can drop off prom dresses, or other styles of formal or casual dresses, at Omnibus Fashions on East Main Street by March 31, 2011. The foundation asks that the dresses be clean.
Omnibus got involved because its manager is a close friend of the Renna family.
Find out what's happening in Babylon Villagefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
"I wanted to make it as easy as possible," says Karen Beatty, Rae-Marie Renna's (Christina's mom) best friend. The owner of the store, Paula Evangelista, was eager to lend her space to the cause. "We like to do as much as possible to help," says Beatty.
The Renna family lost their daughter before she had a chance to celebrate at her own prom event.
“This dress drive for prom night at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center is very close to our hearts, for Christina never made it to her prom,” explains Phil Renna, Christina's father and foundation director.
“Many of these children are in treatment for months at a time, and some never leave the hospital. Having these children experience the simple joy of getting all dressed up for a night of fun... well, for some it is a wish come true.”
So far over 100 dresses have been donated by the community.
According to its website, The Christina Renna Foundation is "dedicated to supporting children's cancer research and furthering awareness and education through the support of cancer groups and outreach programs for the direct support of those in need.”
For more information about foundation and other ways to help just visit the group's website.
