![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/bags.png?resize=225%2C225&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\nRabia Mayet | rabiamayet@radioislam.co.za<\/p>\n
07 August 2025<\/p>\n
2-minute read<\/p>\n
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Susan Harwood, the heart behind Bags of Love, started her mission collecting gently used handbags, filling them with essentials, and giving them to women in need of comfort. From survivors of abuse to women navigating hard times, or those simply in need of a touch of dignity,\u00a0Bags of Love\u00a0brings hope to women in a dignified way.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe inspiration for giving for healing\u201d began when Susan entered her teens and she and her mother donated all her toys to an orphanage in Harare. The simplicity of the act of bringing light to those in difficulty spurred her on, and as a young woman, she got involved in feeding schemes and donation campaigns.<\/p>\n
Ten years ago, she came across a post by her Canadian friend to fill gently used handbags with essential items like toiletries and snacks, alongside a note of encouragement \u201cto lift the spirits of a homeless woman.\u201d Knowing that most of us have used handbags \u201clying around gathering dust,\u201d Susan immediately latched onto the idea and started her own mission, seeking out organizations and women\u2019s shelters that helped women who were victims of trauma from domestic abuse, violence, floods and fires, and donating her \u2018Bags of Love\u2019 to them.<\/p>\n
The project \u201cmushroomed\u201d during COVID when their organization sent teams out almost every day to squatter camps and informal settlements to supply essential items in handbags, as well as other items of necessity like blankets, clothing and appliances, to women in need. While the project started with donating old handbags, the project blossomed with community support, and they are now also able to give out new handbags.<\/p>\n
Susan says that Bags of Love is not \u201cjust a charity,\u201d but more about \u201cgiving somebody a hand up\u201d when they\u2019re going through a rough time, telling them they are loved and do deserve better, giving them hope and \u201crestoring some lost dignity.\u201d The items placed in the bags trigger \u201ca reaction of comfort\u201d to make women feel calm and comforted.<\/p>\n
Typical items in the Bags of Love include general toiletries, tissues, a comb, fragrances, and socks and scarves. Bags given to children have colouring-in books and crayons, teddy bears, snacks, and a little blanket in them. Depending on the situation that they\u2019re attending to, the items do vary.<\/p>\n
Today,\u00a0Bags of Love\u00a0is a trusted source of support across Johannesburg and beyond \u2014 offering help to women in times of trauma and crisis.<\/p>\n
Susan Harwood has learnt many lessons from her initiative, the biggest being the resilience and bravery of human beings, and how dignity can be restored through giving people a \u201chand up instead of a handout\u201d.<\/p>\n
Contact Susan on Facebook: Susan Harwood Bags of Love; or email: harwoods@netactive.co.za<\/a> to get involved in this beautiful initiative.<\/p>\n