Fall River Mother Organizes Prom Dress Drive To Honor Daughter

FALL RIVER (CBS) - Felicia Trudeau prepares for prom. "Anything that's pretty and attracts my eye." She was classmates with Durfee High School Cheerleader Janelle 'Nelly' Eaton.

We first met Nelly at her Fall River home in August of 2015.

The lifelong dancer became paralyzed. Doctors discovered Ewing's sarcoma cancer growing on her spine. The 17-year-old died on November 21st after the tumor spread to her brain.

Her dream to attend Juilliard changed to survive her senior year. Neither happened. The teen was able to attend her junior prom.

Nelly's mother Laura Eaton always carries her daughter's ashes in a case in her necklace. She vowed to send other students to prom.

"I can't believe all of these dresses. It's unbelievable," said Eaton. She helped start a foundation in Nelly's honor, which launched a prom dress driver called Project Princess.

The prom dress drive allows seniors to choose from hundreds of donated new and gently used prom dresses.

The goal was to collect 300 prom dresses to give away to underprivileged seniors at Durfee and Diman High Schools. The foundation has already collected nearly 600 dresses and has since expanded its outreach to all Fall River High Schools.

Felicia was the first to sign up to pick a dress. "I love it. I love the material it's awesome. I looked in the mirror and I was like this is it, this is the dress."

Trudeau is the oldest of three girls. Her mom is now unemployed. "I fell in love with this one dress, $400 and I was like no, I gotta go find something else and I heard about this (prom dress drive) and I'm like I'm going, I'm doing it," said Trudeau.

Although Felicia and Nelly never met, she herself has battled illness. The 19-year-old received a kidney transplant at 13.

"I fought for so long and I never gave up and neither did she (Nelly)," said Trudeau.

Eaton said organizing the prom dress drive helps her heal.

"It was special I'm the type of mom that would've been inside that shop with her and putting everything, I mean she'd have like 10 dresses in her hand and we'd stay there for three, four hours and try dresses on."

"I love it and it's perfect and I can't wait to wear it," expressed Trudeau.