‘Support the girls’: US woman collects 20,000 bras for the homeless

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.

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.

'Support the Girls' founder Dana Marlowe talks to volunteers during the non-profit organisation's official launch party at her home in Silver Spring. (AP Photo)

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 non-profit organisation boasts chapters in several US cities, Canada, Mexico and Australia, with donations from all over the world.

Volunteers sort through bags filled with bras and feminine hygiene products outside of Dana Marlowe's home.

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