Needham-based Hope & Comfort Hygiene Hub is partnering with the GrowHope Foundation to put soap, deodorant, toothpaste, and school supplies into Brockton students' backpacks before the first day of school.

GrowHope founder Sesay T. Johnson launched the "Belmont Businesses for Brockton Kids" summer campaign on Wednesday, July 29, under the foundation's Goods for Hope initiative, according to a campaign announcement posted on Patch. The drive's new partnership with Hope & Comfort, headquartered at 33 Fourth Ave. in Needham, will expand the availability of hygiene products for Brockton students and families who can't afford them.

"Because we've been there, we don't only realize the need... we feel it," Johnson said in the announcement.

Donations of school supplies and personal care items are being accepted at HomeTown Furnishings, 337 Belmont St., Brockton. The store's owner, Ricardo Cruz, grew up in the neighborhood. "I moved to this neighborhood when I was a kid. I went to the Arnone School. I want to help however I can," Cruz said in GrowHope's July 29 announcement.

The drive aims to double GrowHope's donation numbers from previous years by collecting supplies during the summer rather than early fall, so students and teachers are equipped on day one. GrowHope works directly with the Brockton Public Schools superintendent's office and local educators to distribute what it collects.

Hope & Comfort, led by CEO Kerry Carter, is the only Massachusetts nonprofit exclusively focused on ending hygiene insecurity, according to the organization's website. Founded in 2011, it has distributed more than 20 million products statewide and currently moves 5 million items per year through 500 youth-serving and community organizations.

The waitlist is long: 399 groups are waiting for products.

One in three Massachusetts residents experiences hygiene insecurity, and products like soap and toothpaste are not covered by SNAP or WIC benefits. In a February 2025 WBZ NewsRadio interview about Hope & Comfort's work in Chelsea schools, Carter explained the gap those programs leave. "Soap and toothpaste, toothbrushes, menstrual products, they are not covered by SNAP, or what we used to call food stamps or WIC," she said.

The Brockton partnership marks another expansion for Hope & Comfort, which received a Dedham Savings Community Foundation grant earlier in July 2026 to purchase hygiene products.

Residents who want to support the drive can drop off donations at HomeTown Furnishings, 337 Belmont St., Brockton, through the Saturday, Aug. 8 collection event. Those interested in partnering with GrowHope Foundation can email [email protected].