At Living Word Ministries, members believe it’s the little things that can make a big difference. When it came to providing an equitable opportunity for local teens to have access to formal dresses and accessories for prom, Loretta Vigil led the effort creating Prom Girl Boutique.

The boutique is set up in Questa’s Living Word Ministries Fellowship Hall, where volunteers established a boutique with formal dresses and accessories made available at no cost to local teens. The boutique was spurred from an idea by Pastor Gayle Martinez, “All I did was mention it to our congregation and we had volunteers like Loretta start pitching in.” Other volunteers including Yvonne Garcia played a big part in setting up a fashionable boutique for local teens to visit.

Vigil grew up in Amalia and knows the struggles that come with growing up in a rural community. She and her husband Michael lived in Denver for many years and upon returning to their roots in New Mexico, they understood how local teens may not always have the ability to drive to Santa Fe or Albuquerque to get a dress. This, coupled with Vigil’s generous heart was a big motivator for her to lead the efforts of creating Prom Girl Boutique.

Vigil currently lives in Cerro and is semi-retired. She devotes much of her time to supporting causes that she believes in. Currently, she serves as the Taos County Prayer Chapter Leader for the Concerned Women of America where she devotes much of her time lobbying for the safety of unborn children. She supports youth in many events and has been involved in local community beautification efforts. Getting involved in this latest effort at her church was second-nature for Vigil and she is so happy to be serving the local teens in her home community.

Vigil encourages students in Questa, Taos, Red River, Lama, Costilla, Amalia, and even as far as San Luis, Colo., or Raton, N.M., to come check out the pop-up Prom Boutique for free gowns and dresses for every occasion including graduations, weddings, and prom. “We want to do something special for the girls of our community, by giving them beautiful dresses, shoes, jewelry, anything that they can use and enjoy, has been generously donated by loving people of the community,” Vigil says.

Any dresses not distributed for this 2023 Prom Girl Boutique season will be part of next year’s season lineup as she hopes the community will support the effort to grow, with hopes to include both boys and girls formal attire.

While the boutique opened on March 31, Vigil has been taking appointments for people who are not able to make it to the boutique during operating hours. If you need to schedule a time to see the formal dresses, contact Loretta at (303) 807-2801 to make an appointment, she will gladly meet you and help you find the perfect dress.