While most high school students consider attending prom to be a necessary rite of passage, the University of Wisconsin’s Panhellenic Association, along with the Junior League of Madison, distributed donated dresses and accessories on Saturday to students who might not otherwise be able to afford the opportunity to attend the dance.

The All Dressed Up program collects, cleans and gives away secondhand dresses to high school students whose families could not otherwise afford the luxury of buying attire for prom. Panhellenic Association Vice President of Civic Engagement Kari Wolter said over 300 students who might not otherwise be able to bear the expense received dresses in this year’s distribution.

Laura Wallack, a member of the Panhellenic Association, said the purpose of sponsoring the event was to pursue involvement in a way that gives back to members of the greater Madison community.

“This is our way to help out and it was something that would benefit the community,” she said.

This is the Panhellenic Association’s second year co-hosting the event with the Junior League of Madison, which had been the sole sponsor for the program’s first five years of distribution.

Wallack said various sororities on campus provide volunteers, as well as the dresses and accessories, to help facilitate the event and act as personal shoppers and stylists to girls looking for dresses.

Although the event was not set to begin until 8:30 a.m., families had started lining up as early as 3 a.m., Wolter said. Due to the cold, the guests waiting were allowed to enter early.

More than 600 dresses were donated for use in the event, with UW sororities donating over one-third of the total amount of clothing. Wolter said a variety of retailers in the area also provided donations for the event.

In addition to supplying dresses, the event also gave away various jewelry pieces and additional accessories for prom night.

Wolter said any dresses and accessories not taken by the end of the giveaway are placed in storage for the next year’s event. She added some are also donated to charitable foundations.

Wallack said the feedback from the Madison community has been positive and recipients are always extremely grateful during the event.

“The entire time we’re helping them, they’re thanking us for making it a memorable experience,” she said. “We stayed with them for the entire time and made them feel comfortable.”

Members of the Panhellenic Association also provided transportation for customers to and from the event from the Memorial Union. They also worked to recruit a record number of volunteers from the UW Greek community.

Wolter said many families and girls left messages of gratitude after All Dressed Up on the event’s Facebook fan page, with many posts thanking volunteers and donors alike for their generosity and donation of time.

Prior to joining forces with the Junior League of Madison, Wallack said the Panhellenic Association had their own donation program called Dream Girls that had also provided prom dresses free of charge, but collaborating with the Junior League allowed the donation program to expand and to reach more high school students in need.