ALTOONA, Pa. (WTAJ) — Since 2011, the United Way and the Logan Valley Mall have partnered to host the Glass Slipper Project, which gives local students an opportunity to pick out a brand new, or almost new prom dress along with shoes and jewelry for free.

“Prom is special for girls and you get to feel like a princess,” Betsy Dreibelvis, the Director of Development for the United Way, said. “And if something that we can help them feel special in, it is still awesome to see. When they find their dress, they say yes to the dress. It’s like, Oh, they’re so excited. And it’s just it’s really heartwarming and the stories we hear and just the relief.”

Alyza Lamborn is a senior at Altoona High School and had a dress picked out, but decided to check out the Glass Slipper Project where she found her gown within 10 minutes.

“Originally, I didn’t think I would find a dress here. I had one picked out on Amazon that I was going to order and I just thought, like, my grandma offered to take me,” Lamborn said. “And I thought, like, if I go and I find one, then it would be better than just ordering one online. So I was like, What’s the harm in going and finding one?”

She went into the mall with an idea of what she wanted, but the moment she saw a certain purple dress, it quickly changed.

“When we were just looking at dresses originally, I wanted a really big and poofy dress, but I found this one and I really, really liked I liked the color in the style,” Lamborn said. “And then once I tried it on, I just kind of like I was like, this is the one.”

The Glass Slipper Project will continue on Saturday from noon until 4:00 pm at the mall.