SHE Leads Purse Project

Donate to the SHE Leads Purse Project!

SHE Leads Group's mission is women supporting women in any way possible. For our members, that means supporting heart & enterprise®. Heart is our families, or anything near and dear and personal to us. Enterprise is our business or career.

For our community, that support comes in the form of SHE Leads Group members giving back in a BIG way every year with our annual SHE Leads Purse Project - A community service project to give back to the community!

The SHE Leads Purse Project:

The SHE Leads Purse Project started in 2020 in Denver, CO and expanded into the Charleston, SC area in 2023. Every year SHE Leads Group members collect and donate new and gently used purses filled with personal care and hygiene items for women who are victims of domestic violence or are otherwise homeless. In 2023 the program started expanding to other regions of the country where SHE Leads Group has a presence. Since 2020, 3359 purse care packages have been delivered to women in the metro Denver, CO and metro Charleston, SC area. SHE Leads Group members deliver these purse care packages to shelters. Some shelters are women residences, and other shelters are drop-in. We provide purses to as many shelters as possible every year.

• In 2020 we collected 70 purses (exceeding our goal of 60)
• In 2021 we collected 240 purses (exceeding our goal of 150)
• In 2022 we collected 605 purses (exceeding our goal of 500)
• In 2023 we collected 843 purses (exceeding our goal of 750) in Denver. In Charleston, SC, new SHE members embarked on this project for the first time and collected and donated 76 purse care packages.
• In 2024 we collected 905 purses (exceeding our goal of 810) in Denver. In Charleston, SC, members collected and donated 620 purses to 15 organizations.

Hundreds of volunteer hours and thousands of dollars in generous donations, by not only our SHE Leads Group members, but also the community at large make this project possible. And your word-of-mouth and donations make it possible to grow every year. Thank you!

How to donate:

During our purse project collection season, we have drop-off locations. Outside of those months, we typically do not accept donations, although exceptions can be made to do a pickup for larger donations.

• Donate a gently used purse that meets our guidelines below. It can be filled with items listed below, or we also accept empty purses.
• Donate just filler items if you don't have a purse. See items below that we accept for donations.

Denver, CO Region: The SHE Leads Purse Project collection season runs May-August. If you have a large donation, contact SHE Leads Group Founder Beth Boen at 303-981-1541 or beth@sheleadsgroup.com.

Charleston, SC Region: The SHE Leads Purse Project collection season runs September-December. If you have a large donation, contact SHE Leads Group Regional Director, Julie Ellis at julieelliscoaching@gmail.com.

Purse Guidelines:

• Do NOT donate purses with tears, stains, cigarette/perfume odor, broken fasteners/zippers, peeling leather/vinyl. When we receive these, we do not use them and they will be discarded, as we believe the women receiving our purse care packages should have a gently used to new purse.
• Purse needs to be large enough to fit in all the supplies in which we try to fill each purse. (See minimum list of supply fillers below.) An estimated size of purse needed is 9" X 11" with a 3" gusset.
• In an effort to be equitable, designer purses will not be given to unhoused women, as we do not have one for everyone. If designer purses are donated, we will use them for a silent auction to raise money for purse fillers.

Supply Fillers:

Whether you are donating a filled purse, or if you want to donate items in bulk from our Amazon wish list to help fill empty purses, below is the minimum requested supplies for each purse. We accept travel size to full size supplies.

• Shampoo/Shampoo Bar
• Conditioner
• Lotion
• Deodorant
• Toothbrush
• Toothpaste
• Dental floss or flossers
• Feminine hygiene items
• Pair of socks
• Bar of soap
• Nail clipper and/or nail file
• Lip balm
• Razor
• Kleenex/tissue
• Comb or hairbrush

Ideas for additional items that are nice to have in purses:

• Sunglasses
• Sunscreen
• First-aid supplies
• Q-tips
• Tylenol/Ibuprofen/Aspirin
• Cough drops
• Gum
• Gloves
• Hat
• Sewing kit
• Hair ties
• Rain poncho
• Hand and/or foot warmers
• Deck of cards
• Writing pad and pen
• Word search/crossword puzzle books
• Flashlight with batteries
• Perfume or body spray (no glass)
• Something to make a woman feel special (jewelry, makeup, etc.)

Things NOT to include:

• No glass
• Alcohol based mouthwash or cough syrup
• Self-defense items
• Expired non-perishable items
• Nut products
• Matches/lighters
• Supplements/vitamins

Denver, CO Amazon Wish List for bulk items that can be donated.

Charleston, SC Amazon Wish List for bulk items that can be donated.