The Bra Recyclers CEO, Elaine Birks-Mitchell, Awarded Humanitarian Award

Oct. 1, 2013 - PRLog -- The Bra Recyclers CEO, Elaine Birks-Mitchell, has been awarded the Humanitarian Award from the East Valley Arizona NAACP.  The Humanitarian Award recognizes an individual with a record of sustained giving and volunteerism whose efforts have made a “significant contribution to changing lives on a community, national and/or international level”.   Birks-Mitchell will be honored at the 2013 Annual Freedom Fund Gala in Tempe on Friday, October 4^th.

Birks-Mitchell will be honored for her efforts in founding and managing The Bra Recyclers, an Arizona based textile recycling company specializing in the recycling and redistribution of bras. Since 2008, Birks-Mitchell and The Bra Recyclers have been providing women and girls in need with gently used and new bras, through partnerships with over 70 charity organizations including domestic violence shelters, homeless shelters and transitional housing.  Bras are recycled through The Bra Recyclers from individuals, groups, retail partnerships, bra recycling ambassadors across the country.  Additionally, The Bra Recyclers have recruited Bra Recycling Ambassadors in communities throughout the United States who help inform and educate women locally about bra recycling.

In addition to running The Bra Recyclers, Birks-Mitchell is also a board member for the Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Association (SMART), where she helps educate others about recycling. “As a board member of SMART, one of our goals is to help educate the consumer on recycling textiles, such as bras. Receiving the Humanitarian Award is a great opportunity for us to demonstrate how recycling can not only reduce the amount of waste entering the landfills, but also assist those in need within our communities,” Birks-Mitchell said.

Birks-Mitchell and The Bra Recyclers are currently gearing up for their biggest recycling event of the year: Bra Recycling Month. The annual event in October correlates with Domestic Violence Awareness and Breast Cancer month. This year, the event will kick off with The Brazaar Art Showcase. The Brazaar Art Showcase celebrates the lives of millions of women and girls who have battled cancer, neglect and abuse. Submissions to the Brazaar Art Showcase will be featured on October 25^th at the Desert Cancer Foundation of Arizona’s 16^th Annual Luncheon.

For more information on The Bra Recyclers or how you can recycle a bra during Bra Recycling month, please visit www.brarecycling.com