MOULTRIE, Ga. — A prom night you’ll never forget is just what The Breathe Organization is promising the community as it hosts Night to Shine.

The event will be from 6-9 p.m. Friday, Feb. 7, and will celebrate more than 300 participants with special needs. Sponsored by the Tim Tebow Foundation, Night to Shine will be hosted at Heritage Church, 844 Georgia Highway 33 S.

Night to Shine first started in 2014; Heritage was the first church chosen to do so by the Tim Tebow Foundation, Nettie Hatcher, the event’s organizer, said. She said it was to give back to those families with special needs children that feel marginalized — left out.

“A lot of them don’t get to do a prom [and] they don’t have special events for them,” she said. “[Night to Shine] is about allowing them a time to feel celebrated and for the community to come together and celebrate not just the individual with special needs, but their entire family.”

Months in advance, The Breathe Organization started collecting formal wear and prom dresses via donations for the event. These items will be yielded to the participants once they’ve been registered and fitted.

On the day of the event, participants will be able to get their hair and make-up done, shoes shined, receive corsages or boutonnieres, have dinner and ride a party bus.

“It’s their favorite thing of the whole event,” Hatcher said from experience. “It’s just a lot of fun.”

They’ll have professional photos taken, will be announced by name, and walk down the red carpet as prom kings and queens. They’ll also get to hit the dance floor with a live band performance.

But again, it’s a community event, Hatcher stressed.

“It happens to be at Heritage and Heritage is a big sponsor of it, but it really is about the whole community coming together. People are coming from all over the community to make it happen,” she said. 

At least 500 volunteers have already signed up to help, but the help goes both ways. People with special needs have much to teach Moultrie, Hatcher said.

“They unconditionally love,” she said. “They go through a lot of pain but most of the time you see them, they’re smiling and they’re happy.”

Hatcher said she always gets more out of the event than what she puts in. The participants will face no fees to attend the event but do have to go through a short registration process giving their information, health concerns and other specifications.

To register, visit www.thebreatheorganization.org/events. For more information, contact Hatcher at 229-848-2685.