Twirl Foundation formally opens doors with ribbon-cutting ceremony

Sep. 13—At noon on Friday, Sept. 13, The Twirl Foundation in Centralia officially opened its doors with a ribbon-cutting ceremony hosted by the Centralia-Chehalis Chamber of Commerce.

While the foundation has been around for years, the celebration was meant to mark the opening of a new, dedicated storefront on North Tower Avenue.

"We are thrilled to do these ribbon cuttings because we know how much time, effort, money, blood, sweat and tears goes into the moment of actually opening the doors," Chamber Director Cynthia Mudge said.

That statement is true for Holly Phelps, also known as Holly Ryan, as she enters her 12th year as a business owner in downtown Centralia.

"We're so excited to be here, and this is actually a total dream come true getting to have a storefront to put Twirl in," Phelps said.

The Twirl Foundation is a nonprofit organization that distributes free formal dresses and men's wear to local high school students for dances and other events. The foundation also has toiletries and other resources available for customers.

"There's a lot of heart that goes into providing beautiful shoes, dresses, accessories, safe people to wait on them and a pretty atmosphere," Phelps said.

She and a number of volunteers collect, clean and distribute the dresses to local youths. According to Phelps, Twirl is serving homeless youths in Centralia, foster kids, families that are closing a gap financially, grandparents on limited incomes and many other people seeking services and help.

"The power of 5,004 dresses has been huge," Phelps said. "I've had a lot of women over the years who have come to me and said they never went to their dance because they did not have money. So because of the donations of loving people bringing us clean, good, in-condition items, we have 5,004 girls who will never have to say that."

She continued: "This last year, I'm proud to say that we had a beautiful valedictorian wear his very lovely dress shirt from a gentleman in town that he wore proudly."

Each piece of clothing and all proceeds that are given to The Twirl Foundation go toward benefitting local youth and maintaining the storefront in Centralia.

"So, with a very grateful heart, thank you for 12 years of being able to serve in your community," Phelps said. "And I have absolutely fallen in love with our families and the area and being able to help. I've never been so grateful to be a holder of such beautiful, beautiful moments with our families."

As the ribbon was cut, local restaurant owner Joy Templeton shouted, "We love you!"

When speaking with The Chronicle, Templeton said, "I'm very proud of my Holly girl. It's amazing what she's done."

The pair have been friends for many years and ran a storefront together at one point. After the ribbon was cut, community members rushed in to begin shopping.

The new shop is located at 211 N. Tower Ave. in Centralia.

Store hours are noon to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday and also by appointment as need arises. The store is closed Oct. 25 through the end of January but reopens for the rest of the school year starting Feb. 1.

During the summer, the Twirl Foundation hosts pop-up stores to raise funds to keep the boutique open. Proceeds from The Shady Lady are also instrumental in keeping Twirl open, along with cash donations, Ryan said. Donations of dresses and formal wear, however, are the heart and soul of their operation.

To donate to The Twirl Foundation, community members can bring dresses to the foundation's storefront or to The Shady Lady, Phelps' other business just across the street. For more information, follow the foundation on Facebook.