MONROE, CT — Masuk High School students will strut their stuff as they walk down the runway, modeling gowns and tuxedos in the annual Prom Fashion Show to be held in the school auditorium on March 12.
Committee co-chairs, Sandra Gabriel-Busa and Marla Dankenbrink, are working with other volunteers to plan the event, which will begin at 7 p.m. (doors open at 6).
About 50 students participate every year. It used to be 25 girls and 25 boys, who would be paired up, but Dankenbrink said there was always a struggle to get enough boys to participate and a waiting list for girls who could step in whenever commitments made others have to back out.
Now the ratio of boys to girls is not as strict and many students prefer to walk the runway with their friends.
“This year, we were very excited,” Dankenbrink said. “We had 33 girls and got them all in.”
“Marla has a rule, she doesn’t want to say no to anybody,” Gabriel-Busa said.
Dankenbrink expressed her gratitude toward the four or five boutiques who will lend out a total of 66 dresses this year.
“It’s a risk for them,” Gabriel-Busa said. “We have girls trying not to get their hair and makeup on it.”
Camillo’s in Orange always lends Masuk the tuxedos.
“We have some local hair salons that donate their services for the girls and some barber shops donate haircuts for the boys,” Dankenbrink said.
Tickets to the Masuk Fashion Show cost $15 for adults and non-Masuk students, $10 for Masuk students and five dollars for any child in the eighth grade or younger. For tickets, click here. The site also allows for donations from those not attending.
The Masuk Fashion Show will also have an auction. Everyone from the public is welcome to participate, it is not just for those attending the show. To view auction items and make bids, click here.
Keeping students safe
The Masuk Parent Teacher Club (Masuk PTC) sponsors the fashion show, which is the biggest fundraiser for the annual Post Prom.
The Post Prom, held immediately after the Prom, offers a night of fun for seniors, juniors and their dates in a safe, substance-free environment. Its budget includes entertainment, decorating, food and prizes.
“The Post Prom keeps kids out of the parties and away from the drinking,” Gabriel-Busa said. “Now you have to be there at the end to claim your raffle prizes.”
The event, to be held on April 25, includes hypnotists, magicians, psychics, an inflatable obstacle course in the main gym, sumo wrestling, jousting, photo booths, a deejay and donations of free food, snacks and candy.
“My daughter said she had an amazing time last year,” Dankenbrink said. “It’s a fun, safe night.”
Giving back
The Masuk PTC always needs volunteers for events like the Fashion Show and Post Prom. To become a member, click here.
Dankenbrink has been a volunteer for the past 10 years. She and Gabriel-Busa became friends, while serving as co-presidents of the Monroe Elementary School years ago.
“Sandra is doing this out of the goodness of her heart,” Dankenbrink said of organizing the Masuk Fashion Show. “Her two sons don’t want to participate.”
Gabriel-Busa’s older son graduated in 2022 and she still has a son at Masuk. Dankenbrink’s daughter is a senior and her son graduated in 2023.
The two friends started out serving on the Girl Model Committee, first as shadows for the committee chairs, then as co-chairs themselves. Then they shadowed the chair of the Masuk Fashion Show, before heading it themselves.
“This is our second year co-chairing,” Dankenbrink said.
Both women encourage other parents to serve as volunteers.
As a parent, Gabriel-Busa said she believes it’s important to help out whenever asked, especially because so many others have donated their time on committees, while your children go to Masuk.
“You have an obligation to help,” she said. “For the life of me, I can’t see why someone wouldn’t help. I believe with volunteering you are creating a community you want to live in.”
“I love the feeling of giving back to my community,” Dankenbrink said. “It allows me to meet other members of the community. I love supporting my kids. We all know and trust each other. I’ve gained a sense of trust of people in Monroe through being on the PTO in elementary school.”
Dankenbrink said volunteering allows you to create a network of reliable, trustworthy neighbors in your community.
Gabriel-Busa and Dankenbrink said they enjoy being there for the kids and getting to know teachers and administrators in the school.
“I really felt my connection to the school made for a better school experience,” Gabriel-Busa said.
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