US woman leads effort to donate bras to homeless women

“Support the Girls” founder Dana Marlowe talks to volunteers during the nonprofit organization’s official launch party on July 21 at her home in Silver Spring, Md. Marlowe jokingly calls herself an “accidental activist” and works on the initiative in her off hours. AP

SILVER SPRING, Md.—A Maryland woman has collected and delivered more than 20,000 new and gently used bras and 50,000 feminine hygiene products to shelters around the country.

Dana Marlowe, a mother of two who works from her Silver Spring home, says she was motivated to donate her own bras following a 35-pound weight loss reduction.

A year ago, Marlowe put out a call to family and friends on social media. The response was so great, she asked her husband to create a website for what she dubbed “Support the Girls.”

Now the nonprofit organization boasts chapters in several US cities, Canada, Mexico and Australia, with donations from all over the world.

Marlowe says new partnerships with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and corporations, will help bring steady donations for years.