The Association of the U.S. Army and Operation Deploy Your Dress are teaming up again this year for a free pop-up event featuring more than 1,500 cocktail dresses and formal gowns.

Volunteers from the two organizations will welcome military or dependent ID card holders of all ranks and services for the eighth annual Operation Deploy Your Dress D.C. This year’s event will take place April 26 at AUSA headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

Participants will receive two dresses and one accessory, and they will be able to try on the dresses in a fitting room. A separate fitting room will be available for those who might be a little shy.

Menswear, including suits and tuxedos, also will be available.

All participants will be able to sign up for a complimentary AUSA Basic membership, with the option to upgrade to a Premium membership and get access to AUSA scholarships, a copy of The Army Spouse Handbook and other benefits.

The popular event and the dresses are free, but registration for a “shopping” time slot is required.

Register here for one of eight 45-minute time slots scheduled throughout the day beginning at 9 a.m. The last appointment is at 4 p.m. A special advance 45-minute time slot will begin at 8 a.m. for AUSA Premium members only, who can register here.

The donated new and gently used dresses will be refreshed during 15-minute intervals between time slots.

Operation Deploy Your Dress was founded in late 2015 at Fort Bliss, Texas, by a group of military spouses who organized a dress swap to lessen the cost of formal wear for holiday balls. The idea quickly grew into an organization run by dozens of volunteers, offering gently used dresses and accessories to military members and dependents.

The group now has 14 shops across the U.S. and one in Germany, and in the past six years has given away more than 35,000 gowns, saving military families more than $2 million, according to the organization’s website.

AUSA last hosted a D.C. pop-up event in April 2024, when 824 dresses were given away. AUSA and Operation Deploy Your Dress have worked together since 2017, including during AUSA’s Annual Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C.

“AUSA Family Readiness is thrilled to support our service members and families with another Operation Deploy Your Dress pop-up event,” said Holly Dailey, AUSA’s Family Readiness director.