Providing Products For Human Dignity
Providing Products For Human Dignity

Author: gtbadmin

Why Hygiene Poverty Matters in 2025

18 September 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Uncategorized

Hygiene Poverty 2025

In 2025, the need for access to basic hygiene items has never been greater. Families across the United States are facing tough choices between food, rent, and personal care essentials. Yet hygiene products—soap, deodorant, toothpaste, feminine care—remain excluded from government assistance programs.

This gap has created a hidden crisis. Millions of children, parents, and seniors live each day without the most basic items that shape their health, dignity, and confidence. That’s why Giving the Basics exists. As a Hygiene Charity and 501c3, we connect communities with the everyday products that restore dignity and unlock opportunity.

Hygiene: More Than Clean

Hygiene is not just about being clean, it’s about confidence, belonging, and opportunity. When children lack soap or deodorant, they may avoid school. When adults don’t have toothpaste or laundry supplies, they may miss job interviews or isolate from others.

One student shared the impact of receiving hygiene support at school:

“Before, I didn’t care about myself, how I looked or smelled. My grades and attendance were poor, and I had no friends. Once I had the basics, everything changed—my confidence grew, my friendships improved, and my outlook on life was brighter.”

Student Letter LATCA

That’s why hygiene matters in 2025. It changes more than appearances, it changes lives.

Stories of Transformation

Every delivery of hygiene supplies sparks change far beyond the moment.

A Parent’s Relief

“Something as simple as toothpaste or feminine products means so much when you don’t know how you’re going to afford them. Giving the Basics helps with the things food stamps can’t cover, and that makes all the difference.”

KCIA Parent

A Child’s Confidence

“I like the chapstick, deodorant, and lotion because my mom can’t buy them. Sometimes they have soap so I can wash my clothes. Thank you Giving the Basics.”

KCIA Student

A Fresh Start

“When I was released from prison, I worried I wouldn’t have hygiene items. Giving the Basics eased that stress and gave me confidence to start again.”

Journey to New Life Client

Hope in Hard Times

“During lockdown, when morale was low, we received bags of hygiene products. They weren’t just items—they were love in a bag. They gave us strength for another day.”

Brothers in Blue Client

These testimonies remind us: hygiene supplies are not optional. They are as vital to dignity as food and shelter.

Why It Matters in 2025

For families, hygiene support ensures kids show up to school ready to learn, not burdened by embarrassment. For businesses, it offers a credible and measurable way to make an impact in the community. For partners with surplus products, it creates a direct path to sustainability, tax benefits, and meaningful change.

This year, the stakes are higher than ever. Rising living costs are pushing families to the breaking point. Schools and shelters report increasing needs. And communities everywhere are calling on Charity Organizations to step up with innovative, high-impact solutions.

Giving the Basics is that solution. As a trusted Hygiene Charity and 501c3, we provide a streamlined, proven system that puts dignity directly into the hands of those who need it most.

A Smarter Way to Give Back

We believe charity should be both compassionate and effective.

  • Measurable Impact: Every bar of soap, every bottle of shampoo, every tube of toothpaste represents a tangible change in someone’s life.
  • Efficient Partnerships: Businesses and community partners can give with confidence, knowing their investment is used wisely and visibly.
  • Sustainability and Stewardship: Donated goods are distributed quickly and effectively, ensuring no product goes to waste.

This is what sets Giving the Basics apart from other Charity Organizations. We aren’t simply handing things out—we’re building a pathway to dignity that empowers entire communities.

Your Role in the Movement

The need is urgent, but the solution is within reach. Everyone has a role to play in ending hygiene poverty.

  • Volunteer: Bring your family, your business team, or your community group to serve together. It’s a powerful way to see firsthand how a Hygiene Charity can change lives. Sign up to volunteer
  • Donate: Every dollar provides hygiene products for families, students, and seniors who would otherwise go without. As a 501c3, all donations are tax-deductible. Donate today

Hygiene is dignity. Hygiene is opportunity. Hygiene is hope.

In 2025, as the crisis of hygiene poverty deepens, we invite you to stand with us. Together, we can eliminate hygiene as a barrier and build communities where everyone has the basics they need to thrive.

Because when dignity comes first—everything else is possible.

August Community Group Volunteering

10 September 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Volunteer

August Volunteers

Brain Science: The Powerful Benefits of Community Service

QHR Christian Family Movement Volunteers

Have you ever noticed how good it feels to help someone else? Whether you volunteer your time, donate essentials, or simply lend a hand, acts of community service spark something powerful inside of us. Science confirms what our hearts already know—helping others is good for the brain.

The Science Behind the “Helper’s High”

When you engage in community service, your brain releases a surge of “feel-good” chemicals like dopamine, oxytocin, and endorphins. This rush is often referred to as the “helper’s high.” Researchers have found that volunteering activates the brain’s reward centers in the same way eating your favorite food or hearing your favorite song does. (Source)

In other words, when you volunteer, your brain thanks you.

Stress Reduction Through Giving Back

Serving others doesn’t just make you feel happier—it also lowers stress. Studies show that individuals who regularly participate in community service have lower blood pressure and reduced levels of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone. (Source)

When we take time to step outside of our own worries and focus on helping others, our nervous system calms, and our perspective shifts. The act of giving reminds us of the bigger picture, creating space for gratitude and resilience.

Volunteering Strengthens Connection and Purpose

Humans are wired for connection. When you volunteer, you’re not just giving your time—you’re building meaningful bonds with others. Whether it’s packing hygiene kits, serving meals, or tutoring students, acts of community service foster teamwork and belonging.

Brain science shows that social connections are key to long-term happiness. Volunteering provides a sense of purpose and community, which research links to longer life expectancy and improved mental health.

A Win-Win for Everyone

The beauty of community service is that it benefits both the giver and the receiver. When you volunteer, you’re restoring dignity and hope to others, while also improving your own well-being. It’s one of the rare activities in life where everyone wins.

At Giving the Basics, we see this every day. Volunteers leave our warehouse with smiles, laughter, and a renewed sense of joy—because their brains (and hearts) are experiencing the benefits of giving.

Happy Helpers in August

August Volunteers

KC Athenaeum Volunteers

We are so thankful to the community groups who volunteered with us in August. In addition to corporate volunteer groups, we hosted a total of 300 volunteers who packed 303,889 hygiene items for people in need. Volunteers are essential to our ability to provide hygiene access to more than 3.4 million people every single month.

Ready to Experience the Science for Yourself?

If you want to boost your mood, lower your stress, and find deeper purpose, try volunteering. Your brain will reward you—and so will your community.

👉 Sign Up to Volunteer with Giving the Basics Today

Related Links:

Bulk Hygiene Product Donations: Space and Impact

10 September 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Donations, Hygiene Poverty

Bulk Warehouse Donations for non-profilts

In today’s fast-paced supply chain environment, manufacturers and distributors are always looking for ways to optimize warehouse space, manage inventory, and maximize impact. For those in the hygiene product sector, partnering with a 501(c)(3) hygiene charity like Giving the Basics offers a unique opportunity: you can free up valuable warehouse space while making a tangible, life-changing difference for individuals and families in need.

At Giving the Basics, we are proud to announce that we now have the space and capacity to accept large bulk donations of critical hygiene products, including full truckloads. For manufacturers and distributors, this means you don’t have to let surplus or slow-moving product take up valuable real estate in your facility. Instead, you can put those products to work changing lives.

Why Bulk Hygiene Donations Matter

When people think of basic needs, food and shelter usually come to mind. Yet hygiene items are just as essential. Toothpaste, shampoo, deodorant, feminine hygiene products, and laundry soap all play a vital role in health, dignity, and confidence. Unfortunately, these items are not covered by government assistance programs like SNAP, leaving millions of people without consistent access.

By donating truckloads of hygiene products, corporations can fill this critical gap. Your corporate donations ensure that individuals don’t have to choose between paying rent and buying soap, or between putting food on the table and providing clean clothes for their children.

Impact at Every Level

One of the unique strengths of Giving the Basics is our reach. Thanks to our warehouse capacity and national partnerships, your bulk donations can make an impact at every level:

  • Local (Kansas City Metro): We distribute hygiene products directly to schools, shelters, and pantries serving families in our own community. Thousands of Kansas City students can walk into classrooms feeling clean and confident because of these donations.
  • Regional (Midwest): Through our expanding partnerships, bulk donations ripple out to surrounding states, amplifying your corporate impact across the Midwest.
  • National: Working with partner distributors nationwide, we can ensure your donated truckloads extend far beyond Kansas City. These products reach families in rural areas, urban centers, and communities facing urgent need all across the country.

This is not just a local act of generosity—it’s a nationwide movement of dignity, confidence, and hope.

A Win-Win for Manufacturers and Distributors

For manufacturers and distributors, donating in bulk is both practical and powerful. Instead of absorbing costs for storage, disposal, or markdowns on excess product, you can contribute to a 501(c)(3) hygiene charity that specializes in efficient distribution.

Giving the Basics has the warehouse space, volunteer power, and logistics network to handle truckload-sized donations quickly and effectively. That means your products move seamlessly from your shelves to the people who need them most.

Big Donations. Big Impact.

The scale of your donations directly translates to the scale of impact. One truckload of hygiene products doesn’t just help a handful of families—it can serve thousands of people for months at a time. These are critical donations that change the trajectory of lives, improving health outcomes, school attendance, employability, and overall well-being.

And the impact is felt on both sides: your organization saves space and resources, while communities nationwide gain access to dignity and hope.

Partner with Us

At Giving the Basics, we believe in the power of partnership. When manufacturers and distributors align with nonprofits like ours, everyone wins—families in need, communities across the country, and your organization.

If you are a manufacturer or distributor with hygiene products ready to move, we invite you to partner with us. Together, we can transform excess inventory into life-changing corporate donations. With our expanded warehouse capacity, we are ready today to accept your truckloads of critical hygiene items and ensure they reach those who need them most.

Giving the Basics is a 501(c)(3) hygiene charity headquartered in Kansas City with a mission to provide dignity, confidence, and health through access to hygiene products. Your bulk hygiene product donations are more than just space savers—they are life changers.

Contact us today at procurement@givingthebasics.org to arrange your donation and make a big impact—locally, regionally, and nationally.

Corporate Volunteering: Team Building Fun

4 September 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Events, Volunteer

Corporate Volunteering: Team Building Fun

Newmark Zimmer Volunteers

At Giving the Basics, we know that strong communities are built when people come together to serve. That’s why corporate volunteering has become such an important part of our mission. When employees volunteer with us, they’re not just giving back through community service—they’re also building stronger, more connected teams.

Why Corporate Volunteering Matters

Corporate volunteer opportunities give employees the chance to step outside their normal routines and connect with each other in new ways. Packing hygiene products, organizing shelves, or preparing boxes for schools may seem simple, but the teamwork, laughter, and problem-solving that happen in the process are powerful.

Volunteering as a team helps companies:

  • Build trust and collaboration – Serving side by side encourages stronger workplace relationships. Newmark Zimmer (Kansas City)
  • Boost employee morale – Giving back through community service creates pride and fulfillment.
  • Develop leadership skills – Corporate volunteering puts employees in new roles where they can grow.
  • Strengthen company culture – Showing a commitment to the community builds loyalty inside and outside the office.

August Volunteer Impact

This August, we welcomed 21 incredible corporate groups into our warehouse in Kansas City, many of them volunteering more than once! Together, more than 300 volunteers packed 303,889 hygiene items that directly support students, families, and individuals in need.

The passion and heart our volunteers bring is felt in every product packed. Here’s what a few of them shared:

Core Catalysts

Core Catalysts Volunteers

“This was my first time volunteering for this organization, and I am blown away by the impact and work being done here. My heart is full to give back and help those in need and I am grateful to help this incredible group perform its mission. Thanks!” – Core Catalysts LLC

The University of Kansas Health System Volunteers

“This is a great program. I have definitely known people who have needed the basics, and traded food stamps for them. They were in positions that could have cost them everything.” – The University of Kansas Health System

“As a former school nurse, I have seen the impact of providing these basics to students and families. It truly makes a difference and is so needed. In addition to being an opportunity for the student to connect with a trusted adult.” – The University of Kansas Health System

“My mom used to tell me stories of how she was bullied as a kid because her family was too poor to shower. Volunteering here really put into perspective what she went through. I am so glad to support an organization that provides this in KC!” – The University of Kansas Health System

“It is heartbreaking to know that every one of the hundreds of tubes of toothpaste that I touched today will go to someone who otherwise wouldn’t have any. Thank you for being here to do this and allowing us to help.” – The University of Kansas Health System

University of Kansas Health System

Corporate Donations Multiply the Impact

When companies combine corporate donations with volunteer hours, the impact is even greater. Financial support provides thousands of hygiene essentials—like soap, deodorant, shampoo, and toothpaste—while volunteer time helps us prepare and distribute them to schools, shelters, and families in need.

Newmark Zimmer

Newmark Zimmer volunteers celebrating how much they have collected so far

One shining example is Newmark Zimmer. Not only has their team volunteered with us more than four times this year, but they also rallied their friends and colleagues to raise over $30,000 for essential hygiene items. This incredible generosity means tens of thousands of products went directly into the hands of students, families, and individuals who would otherwise go without.

Stories like theirs remind us that corporate giving isn’t just about writing a check or showing up once—it’s about creating a ripple effect of care and dignity that transforms entire communities.

Together, corporate volunteers and donations ensure dignity is restored to those experiencing hygiene poverty in our community.

More Than Team Building—It’s Community Building

One of the best parts of hosting volunteer groups is watching teams leave energized and inspired. Employees don’t just return to the office with stronger bonds; they also carry a renewed sense of purpose, knowing they’ve helped meet a critical need through meaningful community service.

A huge thank you to all of the volunteer groups who joined us in August:

KPMG Volunteers

KPMG Volunteers

Henderson Engineers Volunteers

Henderson Engineers Volunteers

H&R Block Volunteers

H&R Block Volunteers

Cerris Systems Volunteers

Cerris Systems Volunteers

Arthur J Gallaher & Co Volunteers

Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. Volunteers

NFM Volunteers

NFM Volunteers

Trevipay Volunteers

Trevipay Volunteers

Symplr Volunteers

Symplr Volunteers

Amazon FOE 1

Northpoint Development Volunteers

NorthPoint Development

Kansas City Business Journal Volunteers

Kansas City Business Journal Volunteers

Get Involved

If your company is looking for a unique team building activity that combines fun, purpose, and impact, consider volunteering with Giving the Basics. Whether through corporate volunteering, corporate donations, or both, your team can help students, families, and individuals in Kansas City live with dignity.

👉 Sign Up Your Group to Volunteer Today

Charity Day: How You Can Make an Impact Too

2 September 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Events, Hygiene Poverty

International Charity Day

There’s something powerful about knowing your small act of kindness can create a ripple effect. Whether it’s donating a bar of soap, showing up to volunteer, or organizing a drive at work, these moments of giving add up to real change. In a world that often feels divided or overwhelming, charity reminds us that we’re still connected—that we still have the power to help someone else. That’s why days like the International Day of Charity matter. They remind us not only to care, but to act.

Every year on September 5, the world observes the International Day of Charity, a global call to action inspired by the life and legacy of Mother Teresa of Calcutta. This day was established by the United Nations in 2012 to raise awareness and encourage charitable work across the globe. The date honors Mother Teresa’s passing and her lifelong mission to serve the poorest of the poor with compassion and dignity. Her legacy is a reminder that even small acts of charity—whether through time, resources, or care—can leave a lasting impact.

Learn more at the official International Day of Charity website.

The United Nations created this observance to mobilize individuals and organizations around the world to help others through volunteering and philanthropy. The goal is simple: promote solidarity, strengthen communities, and empower people through acts of giving. You can learn more about the meaning behind this global movement at the UN site.

The UN chose this date not only to honor Mother Teresa, but to highlight the crucial role that charity organizations and individuals play in tackling global challenges—like hunger, education, and health. It’s a reminder that generosity doesn’t require wealth or status. It begins with the choice to care—and then to take action. Whether you’re donating goods, volunteering your time, or encouraging others to get involved, you become part of a global movement of people lifting each other up in meaningful, lasting ways.

That kind of impact doesn’t have to start on the other side of the world—it can start right here at home. At Giving the Basics, we make it easy for anyone to get involved in a hands-on, meaningful way. You can volunteer to pack and sort hygiene items at our warehouse, organize a Dignity Drive at your workplace or school, or bring a group to serve together. Whether you’re an individual looking to give back, a family wanting to serve together, or a company building a culture of compassion, there’s a place for you here. Every hour you serve and every item you help collect ensures someone in our community has access to the dignity of basic hygiene. That’s how you can make an impact—right here, right now.

Visit givingthebasics.org to explore how you can volunteer or support our mission. Whether you come once, bring a team, or join us regularly, you’ll be making a real difference. Let’s honor the spirit of this global day with local action. Because when you give the basics, you give dignity—and that’s how you can make an impact.

How Your Donations of Personal Care Items Fight Hygiene Poverty

27 August 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Drives, Hygiene Poverty

How Your Donations of Personal Care Items Fight Hygiene Poverty

From Your Hands to Theirs

Hygiene poverty affects millions, forcing families to choose between essentials like food and basic hygiene products. For students, this can mean missing school due to lack of confidence or health issues caused by inadequate access to items like soap, toothpaste, or menstrual products.

Your decision to donate personal care items or support a hygiene product drive can transform lives, especially for kids. This blog post walks you through the journey of your hygiene kits and donations, showing how they combat hygiene poverty and make a tangible impact for students in need. Whether you’re passionate about donation impact, an advocate for kids, or looking for easy ways to donate, here’s how your generosity creates change.

Step 1: You Donate Personal Care Items or Host a Product Drive

It starts with your generosity. You might:

Every item helps fill a gap created by hygiene poverty—a crisis that keeps students home from school and families from thriving.

Step 2: Volunteers Sort and Pack Your Donations

Next, our incredible volunteers jump into action. At our warehouse, donations are:

  • Sorted by product type and expiration date (e.g., dental care, soaps, menstrual products).
  • Counted and bagged into different quantities depending on product type.
  • Labeled with our Giving the Basics logo and QR code.

Step 3: Schools Place Orders Based on Student Needs

Giving the Basics partners with hundreds of area schools. Each month, school social workers, liaisons, or nurses:

  • Log in to our system
  • Place customized orders based on what their students need most

This means your donation doesn’t sit on a shelf—it’s requested by name because a student needs it.

Step 4: Schools Pick Up and Store Items in the Nurse’s or Counselor’s Closet

Once the monthly order is ready, school staff stops by our warehouse to pick them up. The items are stored in a discreet, accessible place, like the school nurse’s closet, ensuring students can access them with dignity.

School staff members play a critical role, identifying students in need—whether due to homelessness, family financial struggles, or other challenges—and distribute the needed items privately. This setup respects students’ privacy while addressing hygiene poverty head-on, ensuring no child feels stigmatized.

Step 5: A Student in Need Receives the Hygiene Kit

Finally, the moment of impact: a student walks into the nurse’s office and gets exactly what they need—no questions asked. For a child facing hygiene poverty, items like toothpaste, soap, and deodorant mean more than cleanliness.

“I love to go to the Hawk Shop because there is free stuff. I usually can’t have my own shampoo and never get to pick my own soap, but here I do. I like the hair products I can choose for my kind of hair. My mom tries, but she doesn’t have time to shop.”

– A 5th Grade Student from Olathe

A student who couldn’t afford menstrual products can now attend class without worry. A teen who skipped school due to body odor can now participate fully, knowing they’re clean and prepared.

Why Your Donation Matters

Your decision to donate personal care items or support a hygiene drive creates a ripple effect. Hygiene poverty isn’t just a lack of products—it’s missed school days, bullying, and mental health challenges.

By donating personal care items or hygiene kits, you’re helping solve this quiet but urgent issue.

Ready to Help?

Kia America and the Accelerate the Good Program

27 August 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Donations

Kia America Corporate Giving

Driving Dignity: How Kia’s Corporate Donation is Helping Fight Hygiene Poverty

Partner Spotlight: Kia America and the Accelerate the Good Program

At Giving the Basics, we fight hygiene poverty—the lack of access to essential hygiene products like soap, shampoo, deodorant, and toothpaste. These basic items may seem small, but for the children, families, and individuals we serve, they are life-changing.

Through the support of corporate donations, we’re able to reach more people, distribute more products, and expand our impact through Kansas, Missouri, and numerous other states across the country. One of the companies helping us do just that is Kia America.

Kia’s Corporate Giving is Fueling Change

As part of their national Accelerate the Good initiative, Kia America provides regional grants to nonprofit organizations that are making a real difference. When their Central Region team looked for partners to support, Giving the Basics was a natural fit.

“Giving the Basics helps people with basic, but critical, needs,” Russell Wager, vice president of marketing at Kia America shared. “Our goal was to find an organization aligned with our mission to deliver real community impact through corporate donations.”

Their generous support has allowed us to expand hygiene access to thousands of individuals struggling to meet their most fundamental needs—especially children in schools who are often too embarrassed to participate because they lack hygiene products.

A Shared Mission: Ending Hygiene Poverty

Hygiene poverty affects millions in the U.S., yet it often goes unseen. Children miss school, adults miss work, and families face shame over something as simple as not having soap or period products.

Kia America’s corporate giving strategy focuses on measurable social impact, and their investment in Giving the Basics aligns perfectly.

“Through Giving the Basics’ work to bring improved health, hope, and dignity to struggling children and adults, we knew they would be a great partner for us,” Wager said.

By supporting our mission, Kia is helping us to consistently meet the customized needs of more than 1,200 schools, shelters, police stations and pantries every single month. Their generosity has a ripple effect that is providing hygiene access to more than 3 million people.

Why Corporate Donations Matter—For Communities and Companies

At Giving the Basics, we see firsthand how corporate donations create lasting change for families in need—but we also know how powerful that support can be for the businesses who give.

Wager encourages other companies to get involved in the fight against hygiene poverty, emphasizing that the rewards go far beyond philanthropy:

“Supporting nonprofits like Giving the Basics is incredibly important. Providing hygiene products might seem simple, but many families are in crisis—and it’s comforting to know there’s a nonprofit actively helping during hard times.”

But the benefits aren’t just felt by the people receiving hygiene products. Corporate giving also creates real value for the companies doing the donating:

  • ✅ Boosts Brand Reputation:
    Consumers and clients are increasingly loyal to brands that prioritize social impact. Partnering with a nonprofit like Giving the Basics demonstrates authentic commitment to addressing urgent community needs—like hygiene poverty—while strengthening public trust.
  • ✅ Enhances Employee Engagement:
    Corporate donations often go hand-in-hand with volunteer opportunities and community involvement, which are proven to improve morale, retention, and team cohesion. When employees see their company making a tangible difference, they feel more connected to their work—and to each other.
  • ✅ Creates Meaningful Community Partnerships:
    By supporting a mission-driven nonprofit, companies become part of a broader network of organizations working toward shared goals. These relationships can open doors for future collaborations, cross-sector partnerships, and new opportunities to make a difference locally.
  • ✅ Drives Purpose-Driven Growth:
    Today’s customers—and employees—want to align with businesses that stand for something. Supporting nonprofits like Giving the Basics allows companies to live out their core values in visible, measurable ways, making social responsibility a foundational part of business strategy.

Gratitude for a Lasting Partnership

“Seeing the impact of our donation in the communities supported by Giving the Basics has been awesome,” Wager shared. “We’re proud to support their mission.”

We’re equally proud to call Kia a partner. Their belief in ending hygiene poverty through consistent, strategic giving is making a measurable difference.

To learn more about Kia’s Accelerate the Good initiative, visit
kia.com/acceleratethegood.

Be Part of the Solution

Your company can join Kia and others in the fight against hygiene poverty.

Whether through corporate donations of dollars or products, employee volunteerism, or product drives, your business can help restore dignity and change lives.

Giving the Basics Now Serves Every School District in KS!

19 August 2025
gtbadmin
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Categories: Press Room, School Hygiene

📺 Big news to kick off back-to-school season! We’re honored to share on ‪@kctv5‬ that Giving the Basics is now providing essential hygiene items to every single school district in Kansas—helping more than 490,000 students start the year with confidence. From deodorant and toothpaste to soap and shampoo, these basics restore dignity, improve attendance, and give kids the chance to focus on learning. None of this would be possible without our amazing partners, donors, and volunteers—thank you for being part of this impact!