Natalie Farber ’24 created the Ready for the Runway club at the beginning of her sophomore year, and it is a huge success.
Ready for the Runway helps underprivileged girls of all ages build confidence and self-esteem through dress-up and other glamourous activities. Throughout the year, Ready for the Runway has raised money for its cause with bake sales, dress-downs, and drives. Using these funds, the club was able to host Breakthrough Saturdays providing girls the opportunity to dress up, and was able to buy sewing machines and classes for widowed women in India.
For service day, Natalie Farber organized a project at LEAP Dragon Boutique, a non-profit program that works with previously incarcerated women to help them find jobs and housing. During this past service day, members of the club heard personal, moving stories from these women and later held a drive to support them.
What inspired Natalie to create this club is her “love of fashion and passion for helping youth.” When combining both her recreation and her want to help others, Natalie can make a positive and significant impact while still having fun and creating a lively environment.
“Dress-up is an ideal way for young children to work on so many early childhood development skills: literacies, life skills, and creative play,” according to Dr. Karen Aronian, a longtime NYC public school teacher, and college professor at private and public universities across the United States. Giving the girls in Breakthrough the opportunity to express themselves creatively assists them in developing different crucial skills that have a positive effect. The amount of confidence someone has as a child builds the foundation for the rest of their relationships, happiness, and self-esteem.
Ready for the Runway embodies Carrollton’s goals, especially Goal V, through the club’s motivation to “cultivate creativity in young girls and inspire them to believe in themselves.” Natalie also states that her club “benefit[s] the community by empowering girls to be confident, promoting self-esteem, and helping young girls feel good about themselves.”
Since the school year is coming to an end, Natalie has reflected on her goals for the future of the club and what she can accomplish next year. She has plans to create a website, expand the club to different high schools, partner with more nonprofit organizations, and host more Breakthrough Saturdays. Not only has she contemplated plans for the 2022-2023 school year, but she is also hoping that the club’s message lives on at Carrollton and other high schools, even after she has graduated.
