The Chunky Soap Shoppe Donates to a Good Cause

The Chunky Soap Shoppe just donated dozens of our fragrant and luxurious soaps to domestic violence and homeless shelters in CT (i.e. The Prudence Crandall Center, The Umbrella, and The Spooner House). The former two organizations offer shelter and other services for women and children that have been victims of violence and who are escaping both physical and psychological abuse. The latter organization provides housing and supplies to homeless individuals and families.

I first learned of this opportunity online. These shelters were in short supply of basic grooming essentials such as soap, and collections were being taken up specifically for beautiful handcrafted soaps. It became obvious that with all the excess soap we generate (from design updates, changes in fragrance, or even minor mistakes) this was the best possible thing we can do with them; so we packed them up and shipped them out. I truly hope the recipients will enjoy using our soaps and I’m sure this won’t be the last time we make a donation.

Through my research I also became aware of the “Clean the World” organization led by Marriott International, Inc. in which discarded hotel soaps are gathered, disinfected and re-batched for distribution to people who are in need of improved hygiene and better sanitation conditions, all across the globe. Millions of soaps have thus been distributed to families and children where high death rates ensue due to acute respiratory illness and cholera (with estimates of 9,000 children dying per day), and where simple hand-washing can make a difference. What a brilliant idea that is.

Here in America, many of us take for granted the daily ritual of getting clean, as well as washing hands to help avoid the spread of germs. And if soap plays such an important role in one’s good health, then the lack of it certainly does hold big implications.

In closing, while The Chunky Soap Shoppe handcrafts luxurious and fragrant bar soaps and hand soaps with skin-loving and high quality ingredients, let’s not also forget about the basics and the importance of disease prevention through the simple act of frequent hand washing – both for us here and for everyone there.