The Toronto Sun, April 27, 2007.
Prom is a night to remember Teenagers can look like royalty - without spending a fortune
By MIKE STROBEL

Ruth Renwick, left, and Liis Windischmann have what it takes to dress up would be prom kings and queens - without them having to pay a fortune. (Greg Henkenhaf, Sun Media).

For some, it's the end of innocence. For others, it's The End! -- Tagline for the movie Prom Night.

If memory serves, I spent prom night drinking beer at seedy Siloam Hall with all the other rejects.

Saturday, April 28, 1973. Dear old Uxbridge High.
The theme that night was Serenade in Blue, though I do not know how the school gym looked. I wasn't there. No one asked me to go. Sheesh. Prom night can sure mess with you head.

I am still licking those old wounds as I venture into the cavernous Legendary Logistics warehouse in Mississauga. Nestled among the stacks of water heaters, rollerskates and plastic parts, is an oasis of colour: Racks with hundreds of prom dresses. Here, I find two dream girls.

One is Ruth Renwick, ex-debutante and homecoming queen in Lima, Peru.

'A WOMAN REMEMBERS'

Now, she is a Peel social worker. Four years ago, she founded Inside the Dream, a non-profit which has collected these snazzy duds for grads in need.
Ruth is a firecracker.
So is Liis Windischmann, 35, top Toronto model and crusader for the "curvy" trend in fashion. She has lent her name to Inside the Dream. Liis has a prom scar or two. She was a size 12, with slim pickings on store racks.

"I couldn't find anything to fit me, except a black and white dress, which I didn't love. "But I can remember every nuance of that dress." Off the shoulder. A bow at the breast. Taffeta. "A woman remembers her wedding dress and her prom dress," says Liis, who now strolls the world's catwalks as a size 14. "They define where you are in life, the feeling in your heart, the memories. It's not just a piece of clothing."

And it's not cheap. Throw in hair, makeup, heels. Too much for some families. Even guys. Tux rent. Formal shirt. Corsages. Shoes. Inside the Dream collects those, too.

On May 7, more than 100 kids, most referred by their teachers, will descend on the Mississauga Convention Centre to try on outfits. Some will tell Ruth their stories.

Last year, a girl with cancer in her neck, vowed to walk at her formal. And she did, rising from her wheelchair in a stunning blue gown. There may be working, single-mom students with barely enough cash to feed their kids, let alone buy a gown. "You should see their faces when they try on the dresses," says Ruth. "It's like watching Cinderella."

Tags carry names like Alfred Sung and Holt Renfrew. Some are donated new by suppliers, some are second-hand from prom princesses of the past. There will even be outfits for moms who chaperone on Grade 8 grad nights. Ruth and her volunteers also are on the lookout for perfume, jewelry, party purses, boas... For boys: Tie clips, cologne, restaurant gift cards (a feller's got to treat a lady), disposable cameras, even dance lessons for the slow of foot.

See insidethedream.org for details.

"I'm a mom," says Ruth, whose daughter Trisha helps run the project. "I cannot bear for a mom to say to her children, 'I have to pay the rent, I have to buy groceries, so you cannot go to your formal dance.' "These students struggle so much to graduate. But if they don't have the right outfit, they can't celebrate. "At that sensitive age, it's so hard on self esteem." Even harder for girls who do not fit into our skinny world, which is why Inside the Dream's direst need is sizes 12 and up.

Ruth looks me over. "You're about an 18." I will check my closet.

Mike Strobel
Mike.strobel@sunmedia.ca
416 947-2265