(SAN ANTONIO) – Young women are looking and feeling their best thanks to a Texas non-profit focused on boosting teen confidence.
The Madrina Project was given a new breath of life when Carmen Lidia Fajardo stumbled upon the non-profit in her early 20s.
Listen to the story of how it all got started with K-LOVE's Tala Shatara:
Carmen needed a dress for an impromptu military ball, but didn’t have the money for an elaborate gown. However, hope was not lost.
Through a mutual friend, Carmen visited The Fairy Godmother Boutique to shop for a dress. The organization gives San Antonio-area teen girls the chance to shop gowns for prom, homecoming and other upscale events.
In 2009, Carmen took over the organization and renamed it the Madrina Project.
“We originally went by ‘The Fairy Godmother,’ but as we rebranded, we wanted a name that better reflected the city and the girls we serve. ‘Madrina,’ meaning Godmother, represents the women who nurture us—the ones who guide us in womanhood, faith, and family," Carmen explains.
Over the past 15 years, Carmen has served hundreds of women needing the same help.
More than 300 hundred dresses, even some that have never been worn, have been given to girls preparing for a night to remember.
Realizing that there might be a stigma attached to getting a dress from a non-profit rather than buying one off the rack, Carmen knew it was time to pivot.
“We help remove this shame piece from our program,” Carmen said.
That is when she developed the Significant U Empowerment Conference. It gives women a full-day experience to learn tools that spark confidence and nurture connection.
The first several conferences went off without a hitch, with donations and volunteers ready to serve.
“San Antonio is one of the most generous, collaborative, incredible places, I think, in the world,” she said.
From college resources to leadership sessions, the conference is a full-day event that develops career readiness and boosts the self-worth of its participants.
The conference concludes with the pay-off: Dress shopping.
Hundreds of dresses are waiting for conference goers to find the perfect gown for formal occasions such as prom, homecoming, military balls, and more.
“I'm literally having to be like, ‘please don't run, I don't need anyone to have a black eye,’ or ‘there's plenty of dresses, there's plenty of help volunteers here to help you zip up and help have a boutique experience,’” Carmen joked.
The boutique didn’t always have an abundance of dresses for girls to shop. In the early stages, Carmen relied on dress drives put on by various members of the community, and one community partner drastically helped launch her boutique to another level.
“K-LOVE San Antonio reached out to me,” she recalled.
After several years of flourishing conferences and donations, those donations diminished and she needed a miracle to keep operations going.
K-LOVE San Antonio offered to host a dress drive outside of a free concert coming to the city.
“They were like, ‘yeah, come bring your business cards, bring the car to load up, and we have tents, and we have dress racks, so you don't have to worry,’” she said.
Twenty to 25 dresses in stock turned into 200 to 300 studios after K-LOVE’s first drive.
Carmen said she does this all in the name of being the hands and feet of Jesus.
“Lord, no matter if it's a good day or a bad day, you're going to get the glory,” she said.
You can learn more about The Madrina Project and find ways to serve all over the country at their website.