Abilene’s Ballgown Collection

Maegan Brest loves ballgowns. “If I could wear them grocery shopping, I would!” she said. One day, Maegan wandered into Dillard’s to look at all the pretty dresses. The glitz and the glam just called to her. As she walked through the aisles, she noticed a girl choosing dresses to try on. “I could tell she didn’t really have the funds to buy one, and it broke my heart,” Maegan reminisced. The idea for Abilene’s Ballgown Collection started that day.

Maegan posted her idea on Facebook and asked her friends if they had any ballgowns to donate. Very soon, dresses started arriving on her porch. Friends in her hometown of San Angelo dropped off dresses at her mom’s house to contribute. That first wave of dress donations topped off at sixty dresses!

A DESIRE TO HELP
Maegan wanted to create a place where dresses are given out freely, no questions asked. Her love for sparkly things and her desire to help the Abilene community came together in this little storage unit where she hangs up all the donated dresses on clothing racks. “I recently bought some pop-up changing stations,” she explained, “to make it easier to try dresses on.” Maegan loves seeing the excitement on the girls’ faces as they choose a formal dress when they would not have gotten the chance otherwise.

Girls find Maegan through Facebook and word of mouth. She chose a practical, searchable name for her Facebook page: “Abilene’s Ballgown Collection – Maegan Brest.” Maegan will occasionally post pictures of the dresses to her page so people know what is available. Being a REALTOR® in Abilene, she is used to working with other people’s schedules, so being available at any time of day was not a hard transition for her. Her passion for helping others shines brightly through this outreach.

“A lot of people think that it costs something to get one of these dresses. But there’s no catch. I just want people to have fancy things,” Maegan said. If someone offers to pay for a dress, Maegan tells them she accepts bags of socks instead. She then donates these to the homeless shelter. This will never be a requirement, though. Some girls return dresses, but that is also not an expectation. (She just asks that they clean them first.)

Some dresses that are donated are in need of small repairs. Once, Maegan worked with Dillard’s to buy dresses for very low prices because the zippers were broken. Some of the donated dresses had this issue as well. Maegan does not sew, but she does know how to enlist the help of the community. She thought about working with the Wylie High School Home Economics department. She sent the broken dresses there; they repaired them; and then girls at the high school could use them for their formals.

BALLGOWNS FOR ANYONE
The ballgowns in Abilene’s Ballgown Collection are for anyone. Maegan does not have any requirements of age or proof of income. Women from Dyess Air Force Base have picked up dresses for the Military Ball. Girls at Wylie High School shop her collection for prom. Maegan is most thankful for the opportunity to help Beyond Trafficking by donating seven blue ballgowns for the “Blue Tie Affair’’ gala. She would love to work more with groups to have several girls or women peruse her collection all at once.

Although Maegan prefers all the sequins and jewels, she realizes that other girls and women have different likes and dislikes. “Some girls want a silk dress or they don’t want to be showy. I have to keep that in mind,” Maegan said. She takes in any formal dress, except wedding gowns. “I get a lot of bridesmaid dresses, actually.” She even has one quinceanera dress! She keeps her collection relevant, though. If there is a dress that is not being looked at for a while, Maegan will donate it.

Maegan hopes one day for a location more appropriate than a storage unit for this outreach. “If only I had a bus, I could bring the collection to the girls,” Maegan dreams. Another idea is to do a “Dress Swap” day, where girls can bring a dress they have worn and exchange it for another dress.

GIVING BY EXAMPLE
Maegan wants to show her children by example that they can do things for others and not expect anything in return. She loves working on this project with them. Her girls enjoy organizing the dresses on the rack with her. “They are not as frilly as I am,” she described, “but they like helping people.”

“I started Abilene’s Ballgown Collection,” Maegan explained, “wanting a place for girls to be able to give and then just to give dresses back out. It’s just something I do. I’m not going to make it a non-profit. It’s just giving. On the side. For the love of others.”

Maegan has 161 dresses and is always accepting more. She would love to collaborate with anyone doing something similar. You can find her on Facebook at “Abilene’s Ballgown Collection – Maegan Brest.” She is also accepting formal shoes in all adult women sizes.

By Laura Daulton

Photos By Shayli Anne Photography