Glamming up for the ball

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Air Force Ball gowns at your fingertips

If "not having a dress" is one reason for not attending the Air Force Ball on Sept. 19, you can cross that excuse off your list. The Airmen and Family Readiness Center, in Building 150, has a volunteer-run dress loan program available to all military, dependents and civilians at Hill Air Force Base.

Myong Czop, wife of Chief Master Sgt. Kenneth Czop, 388th Fighter Wing command chief, volunteers her time to organize the ball gown, dress shoes and purse loan program at the AFRC and reports the variety of dresses and shoes available is impressive. "Most of our dresses are very nice and worn only once before they were dry-cleaned and donated to us," she said.

To borrow a dress, or simply browse the inventory, appointments are available Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. by calling Czop weekdays, 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., at 820-5179. Making an appointment is necessary because the program is operated solely by volunteers, so the days and hours of operation can vary depending upon volunteer availability.

After borrowing a dress for an occasion, dry-cleaning the dress before returning it to the AFRC is appreciated, Czop said. However, if budget constraints do not allow for this, the Officers Spouses Club donates funds to the dress loan program to cover some dry-cleaning fees.

The dress loan program is available year-round for any occasion. Teenage dependents can use the dress loan program for prom and graduation ceremonies, and others can use the dress loan program for any other special occasion.

Military spouse, Loretta Bernhardt, recently used the dress loan program for her husband's Airman's Leadership School graduation ceremony.

"There would have been no way I could have attended the graduation (without this program)," she said. "For a stay-at-home mom on a senior Airman's pay to get the tickets, dress and a babysitter, we couldn't afford it."

Plus, with two formal events, such as the ALS graduation and the Air Force Ball, scheduled within weeks of each other, spouses would feel pressured to buy two different formal dresses for each occasion. With the dress loan program, wives can borrow two separate dresses for each event and not worry about wearing the same dress twice.

Lory Jones also used the dress loan program to attend her husband's ALS graduation last month, but she plans to wear a dress from her own collection to the Air Force Ball this month.

"I love going to events like this," Jones said. "It's like a reward for the spouses, too, for going out and working hard. You feel like Cinderella for a night, because most of the time we're stuck at home cleaning all day. It's not every day that you get to dress up."

"This is unique to the Air Force," Bernhardt added. "You don't get to do this very much in the civilian world, except for fundraising and charity events if you're rich. It's nice that the Air Force provides special events for their employees."

Without this program, Jones and Bernhardt said they could not take the opportunity to enjoy the Air Force perk.

For those who would like to donate a dress, Czop said donations are always appreciated. Please give the dresses to the AFRC front desk personnel during business hours to prevent damaging the donated item by leaving it out in inclement weather.

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