Good News Friday: This NC church gives away free prom dresses

A NC church in Apex makes the biggest school event accessible to everyone with free prom dresses. Plus, a beer that cheers to hurricane recovery.

Anyone who’s been to a grocery store or gas station in recent years knows how inflation rears its ugly head around every corner in our daily life. As bad as that is, there’s a different type of inflation that’s also been slowly taking hold among what’s left of middle-class America. I’ll call it recreational inflation. 

Activities that were once a part of every kid’s childhood, from Little League and other organized sports to music lessons and amusement park trips, are becoming more expensive, and therefore less accessible, by the year. Even prom, that once-universal high school milestone, has become out of reach for countless kids around the country. 

That’s the bad news, but it’s Good News Friday, so I’m here to highlight the folks who are doing something about it. This week, I learned about a church in the Triangle area that’s doing its part to ensure that everyone who wants to make prom a reality can do so. 

Apex Prom Shoppe makes prom accessible to all teens

(Photo via Apex UMC Prom Shoppe)

The price of prom has increased by around 40% since 1998, and while that’s not even half of the 86% inflation we’ve seen across all consumer goods, there’s always pressure to go bigger on prom night — a nice dinner, a nice ride, a big afterparty, etc. 

The Prom Shoppe at Apex UMC helps students take care of one of prom’s biggest price points: the dress. For 18 years now, the Prom Shoppe has offered gently used or never-before-worn prom dresses for no cost. 

“It’s a rite of passage. Everybody remembers their prom. Everybody remembers the dress. And we want every girl to have that experience,” Brandi Sadler, volunteer coordinator for the Apex Prom Shoppe, told ABC11. 

This year’s pop-up, which takes place at Apex United Methodist Church today from 3-7 p.m. and tomorrow, Feb. 28, from 10 a.m.-1 p.m., will offer more than 3,000 dress selections as well as shoes, jewelry, and accessories. 

Hi-Wire brews beer to benefit Hurricane Helene recovery

Today is Brew Day, marking the official launch of a partnership between two heavy hitters in North Carolina’s brewing industry, all going to a great cause. So who are they and what are they brewing today? 

Hi-Wire Brewing in Asheville is teaming up with Charlotte-based NoDa Brewing to release Odyssey IPA, a collab beer that will raise proceeds to benefit the continued Hurricane Helene recovery efforts in western North Carolina. 

Specifically, proceeds from all sales of Odyssey IPA — a 6.5% ABV hazy IPA brewed with Dolcita, Citra, and Mosaic hops — will benefit the Asheville Regional Coalition for Home Repair, which provides no-cost repairs to low-income families whose homes were damaged by the hurricane.

The idea for the partnership was inspired by NoDa’s efforts in the weeks following Helene, when the company trucked in supplies for the community and brewed over 1,000 barrels of beer for Hi-Wire while the city’s water remained offline, shutting down beer production. 

“NoDa had our backs when things were pretty dark around here. They helped us keep beer on shelves and helped our neighbors get much-needed supplies,” said Peter Batinski, head brewer at Hi-Wire. “Getting to brew this beer with them and raise money for folks still rebuilding, that’s what the beer community is all about.”

Be on the lookout for the beer in both breweries’ taprooms and retail stores following its release on March 27. 

Unox opens US manufacturing facility in Denver

Unox, the world’s largest commercial oven manufacturer and the only brand of combination ovens built in the US, celebrated the grand opening of its first US manufacturing facility in Denver this week.

The $20 million facility, which began production in late 2025, is a huge addition for the unincorporated community of less than 3,000 people on Lake Norman. The company called the opening “the next chapter in Unox’s long-term investment in the Charlotte region and a signal of what’s ahead as the company deepens its roots in North America” in a release following this week’s events. 

“We’ve been building toward this moment in Charlotte for a long time,” said Derrick Richardson, Unox president of North America. “This facility is a milestone and a platform for everything that comes next. Bringing our partners here to experience that firsthand felt like exactly the right way to open this chapter.”

The event brought foodservice dealers, manufacturer’s representatives and Unox leadership to the facility for an immersive experience that included live cooking demonstrations, a guided tour and an official ribbon-cutting ceremony, all followed by an evening reception at the NASCAR Hall of Fame in Charlotte.

International oven manufacturer opened a new $20 million manufacturing facility in Denver, NC, marking the company’s first US manufacturing location. (Photo via Unox)