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An Inspiring Woman on a Mission: Rabbi Amy Weiss

women on a mission Dec 15, 2017
 

It all began with a blog post.

Rabbi Amy Weiss, a philanthropist with a calling to do good in the world, was blogging for the Houston Chronicle when she heard from a social worker who made an observation that changed her life.

Every holiday season, Amy was told, there were countless toy drives in the Houston area, but what many disadvantaged children really needed was far more basic: underwear.

For children in homes where parents are struggling to put food on the table or provide shelter, clothing can be an issue. Children might not have enough pairs of underwear to get through the week, much less extra pairs in case they had an accident. 

There was the humiliation of wearing undergarments that didn’t feel or smell clean. It made them vulnerable to bullies. It could even affect their ability to attend school; if they had an accident and no access to clean underwear, they might be sent home because of soiled clothing.

The situation affected these students’ hygiene, their health and their dignity.

Amy quickly wrote a blog post calling for underwear donations and her readers came through. Donations were so tremendous that it prompted the formation of her nonprofit, Undies for Everyone, in 2012.

The group is providing underwear to school nurse partners in more than a dozen school districts in cities like Houston, Dallas and Huntsville. There’s also direct distribution through organizations that help the homeless, food banks and the City of Houston’s “Back to School Fest.”

“Due to their help, thousand of kids are able to start the school year with new underwear,” said former Houston Mayor Annise Parker. “When I was a kid, underwear was not on my gift list, but these children are excited because they usually have hand-me-downs or don’t have enough pairs of underwear to get them through the school week.”

Last year, Undies for Everyone distributed about 160,000 pairs of underwear, including 50,000 pairs at the back to school festival.

But that’s just a fraction of the impact the group is having this year.

Responding to the series of natural disasters that hit the United States this fall – including Hurricane Harvey in Houston – Undies for Everyone is truly living up to its name of serving everyone. It has broadened its mission to provide children (and adults) affected by disasters with undergarments. By the end of October, the group had distributed over one million pairs of underwear to victims of hurricanes and the California wildfires.

In addition to the group’s home base of Texas, undies have been distributed in Florida, the Caribbean and California.

Undies for Everyone has also raised close to $1 million for relief efforts.

For Rabbi Weiss, this dramatic growth is a part of being true to the cause that inspired the founding of the nonprofit in the first place. It has been fueled by the generosity of those who wanted to help after an unprecedented series of events led to the displacement of thousands of people.

“The recent disasters have brought attention to the importance of the most basic need and human dignity of having clean underwear,” she said. “It is so often taken for granted until you lose everything.”

You can learn more about Undies for Everyone HERE

Words of Advice from Amy:

“Staying true to your mission each and every day will make your organization stronger."

Are you a Woman on a Mission? A #ChangeMaker working hard to make the world a kinder, brighter place for those in need? I'd love to share your story.

All you have to do is fill out this form and share with me your vision, your mission, your journey and the impact you're making through the work of your small nonprofit. I'd love to feature you as a Woman on a Mission AND bring a little more attention to your good work with a little marketing love!