Project Circles of Support

Since 2021, Project Circles of Support has dedicated itself to providing basic essential hygiene products to students without homes and families escaping domestic violence & sexual assault. Many students without homes have endured trauma and abuse, affecting their stability in housing. Childhood abuse, foster care, and other traumatic events can precipitate homelessness. And families fleeing domestic violence & sexual assault leave with just the close on their back, which leads them to shelters, with limited supplies.

We believe that everyone deserves to feel clean. Yet, across the St. Louis area alone, over 20% of St. Louis Public School students are unhoused, which is over 10 times the national average. Many of these students face significant challenges in accessing basic necessities, including personal hygiene products.

Approximately 2,200 incidents of domestic violence are reported to the police annually in St. Louis City alone.

Domestic violence assaults have been increasing steadily since 2015, with a notable concentration in specific neighborhoods such as Dutchtown, Gravois Park, Carr Square, Columbus Square, Hyde Park, Penrose, College Hill, and O'Fallon Park, there are 4.2 million adults and families that are forced to make impossible choices between buying food or basic hygiene essentials like deodorant, shampoo or laundry detergent. No one should have to face these decisions.

Purchasing everyday essentials such as period products, shampoo, toothpaste, or deodorant is something many of us take for granted. However, for those with low incomes, experiencing homelessness, or seeking refuge in local shelters, these necessities have become unaffordable luxuries. Events like illness, disability, family breakdown, or job loss can push people into destitution, and these situations can happen to anyone. This is especially true during the holiday season when making ends meet is even more challenging.

Financial decisions are tough for everyone, but for individuals who are unhoused and living in shelters, these choices become extraordinarily difficult. Mothers often prioritize feeding their families over purchasing hygiene products, while teens and young adults may choose to go hungry to avoid the embarrassment of attending school or work with unwashed hair and body odor.

Hygiene insecurity carries a social stigma that affects all aspects of life, including work, school, and relationships. Lack of access to hygiene products undermines confidence, self-esteem, and opportunities for those most vulnerable. People miss out on job prospects and promotions, women may be confined to their homes due to a lack of period products, and children might skip school because they don't have clean uniforms or gym clothes.

Hygiene poverty is degrading, and in response, Project Circles of Support is making an urgent appeal for hygiene and personal care products for unhoused students and women escaping domestic violence and sexual assault. While donations are coming in, our efforts extend beyond merely distributing hygiene items. We provide our families with customized storage boxes for their products. We offer two types of boxes: a universal hygiene box and our GoWitDa Flo box, which includes feminine products and essential items for that time of the month.