A new donation program at Reagan National Airport is providing local charities with unopened and gently used toiletries that would otherwise be thrown away.
Since April, the “Donate Don’t Discard” initiative has collected 2,913 items that failed to comply with TSA restrictions and would otherwise have gone to the landfill. Instead, products such as toothpaste, lotion, hair gel and sunscreen now go to D.C.-area charities that distribute products to unhoused people, domestic violence survivors and other people in need of basic necessities.
“The objectives are one, to meet our sustainable goals and sustainable practices; two, to give back to the community; and third is to encourage our passengers who might be a bit frustrated,” Courtnie Gore, social impact specialist with the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, told ARLnow. “They lost something super valuable… but they’re not discarding it.”
A total of 1,380 pounds of products have gone to Bethany House Northern Virginia and Northwest Community Food in D.C.
Kristina Filipovich, community coordinator with Northwest Community Food, said the quantity and variety of toiletries has helped her nonprofit provide key services, like offering sunscreen to unsheltered people and helping a client restock on essentials after fleeing from domestic violence.
“It means meeting a basic human need of hygiene, but also with the dignity and excitement of a touch of luxury and fanciness,” she said.
Clients have been especially enthused to see high-quality hair products from brands like Mielle and ECO Style.
“It makes people really excited,” Filipovich said. “Americans just love their toiletries and their beauty products, no matter their income level.”
Today (Tuesday), staff sorted through 613 items weighing 220 pounds in total. But the biggest haul came in July, with 900 items weighing in at 525 pounds.
Gore said she’s happy to see “Donate Don’t Discard” give products a second life instead of letting them go to waste.
“We did not know that it was going to be this successful,” Gore said. “We’re really happy with it.”
