Maria Macnamara took a trip to Ethiopia to volunteer in an orphanage but what she discovered during her time there sparked the creation of her charity, Smalls for All®. An organisation who are on a mission to make sure that those in need across Africa and the UK have access to the basic necessity we all take for granted - underwear.
Talk us through your work as a volunteer in Africa?
“I took a few volunteer trips: each was a huge learning experience for me and holds lots of memories, not all good. When I got home I was always very aware that following my trips, I’d left behind many children who had got used to me and come to rely on me. I was very worried that perhaps I was doing more harm than good by spending two to three weeks with them, then leaving for home.”
How did these trips inspire you to take action?
“I discovered that many women and children had no underwear, and there was none to be had anywhere. It’s a health and hygiene problem for many poor African communities, as women often only own one pair of tattered pants or have none at all. It’s also a matter of dignity.
Whilst I was trying to make a positive impact during my volunteer trips, I wanted to do something more sustainable that would have longer-term benefits so I began collecting new pairs of pants to send to them. My initial plan had been to collect 2,000 pairs but by the end of the year I had 6,000 and they just kept coming. And that’s how Smalls came to life as a registered charity.”
How did you come to start supporting those here in the UK?
“In 2019, we changed our constitution to also support those in the UK who have a need for underwear. Giving pants and bras may seem like a small thing, but it can make a life-changing difference. For example, each month many teenage girls miss school and women miss work because having no pants means they’re forced to stay at home during their period. And it’s not just girls. We recently had a request from a UK school bank for underwear saying they have children who can't do PE as they have no underwear so won't use the changing rooms.”
How many pieces of underwear have you collected to date?
“So far we have collected 2,239,819 since we started the charity in 2010 and we have donated them to several countries including Angola, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, England, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Scotland, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Wales, Zambia, Zanzibar and Zimbabwe.”
What is the Invisible Underwear initiative?
“This year we have partnered with B Corp underwear brand Nudea to give their customers an easy way to donate money to our cause. Invisible underwear can be purchased at checkout with all proceeds being passed onto Smalls for All® to support the life-changing work we do. With the brand's focus on supporting people and planet, it seemed like the perfect fit.”
How can people get involved?
“You can of course donate via Nudea’s invisible underwear scheme but we are also always looking for underwear donations. This year we celebrated our 14th birthday in August with an incredible 14,000 pairs of pants donated through our buy-to-give wish list - it’s the easiest way to donate, by purchasing pants for us at wholesale prices. Donating this way means we can get exactly what we really need – sizes, quality, styles – to be able to fulfil the underwear requests we receive.”
Learn more or donate here.
