Delaware Tech’s eighth annual Fashion Show draws crowds to Owens Campus
(Photo by P. Szczepanska)
The Fabulous Dress clothing store gets a lot of applause for the presentation of its pink embellished gown.
By Paulina Szczepanska
Delaware Technical Community College, Owens Campus, hosted its annual fashion show benefitting study abroad programs on Nov. 14 in the Carter building.
The event opened at 2 p.m. with a reception that included champagne, wine, cheese and chocolate, and was followed by a two-part fashion show with a student makeover reveal at the end.
Delaware Tech Director of Communication and Planning Christine Gillan said the fashion show started out eight years ago as a luncheon event, where the models walked around the room and between the tables. The show changed a lot since then, she added.
“We realized we could get a lot more people if we eliminated the lunch part,” said Gillan. “Now the show is energized and much more of a New York-style runway.”
She said the college typically raises between $17,000 and $18,000, which is collected
from the fashion show tickets sales, the silent auction, the 50/50 raffle and donations.
All proceeds benefit international study scholarships, as well as the Global Understanding Series open to the community, Delaware Tech students and staff.
Gillan said there’s a lot of logistics that goes into putting the show together, so selecting the clothing stores, models, makeup and hair stylists began in August.
This year, 15 boutiques presented their clothes and 70 models volunteered to walk the runway, she said. About three quarters of them were Delaware Tech students.
Besides the fashion show, the event also included the “big reveal” of three Delaware Tech students who got a professional makeover. Among the selected winners were: Communication major Chelsea Wooten, Human Services student Carmelle Jean-Francois and Early Childhood Education major Jennifer Martinez.
The makeover students were selected through the application process, and only those who graduate next spring were taken under consideration, said Gillan. The idea of this transformation was to develop the new business look for graduates starting to pursue their career in a professional environment.
Delaware Tech Instructor Lynn Wajda said she comes to the fashion show every year to support scholarship opportunities for students and enjoy a fun day with her family.
“For the last three years my daughters have been joining me, so we make it a girl’s day,” said Wajda.
She said she knows some of the students, so it was great seeing them on the runway.
“It’s just wonderful to watch,” said Wajda. “The confidence, how beautifully they’re made up, you can tell they’re really enjoying the event.”
Model Neepa Jani said it was her second time volunteering to walk the college’s runway. She added seeing everybody getting excited for the show is worth taking part in the event.
“It’s like an organized chaos backstage, everything happens so fast,” said Jani. “But in the end, everybody comes together for a great cause.”
(Photo by P. Szczepanska)
Model opens the presentation of the Wild Orchid Boutique fashion.
(Photo by P. Szczepanska)
Fashion Show’s Chair Rozi Berberian (far right) and Vice-Chair Robert Sessa (right) introduce one of the makeover students, Early Childhood Education student Jennifer Martinez (far left).
(Photo by P. Szczepanska)
All of the models come out for the final walk of the fashion show.