Thoughtful & Caring Hiddenfeet Visitor
August 8th, 2007
In July, Charlotte from Kentucky posted a comment that warmed our hearts.
All of the girls who work on Hiddenfeet.com want to give Charlotte a big breasted hug and a sincere thank you for being such a wonderful person. We want everyone who reads the discussion below to think of similar ways to help other underprivileged girls.
Charlotte says:
I always made my time spent in the girls locker room as brief as possible when I attended middle school. The other girls would steal my bras, wear them on their heads, mimic me by putting balloons under their shirts.
KimberlyGates says:
Charlotte where were your teachers when this was happening?
Charlotte says:
Kim, my teachers thought it was funny. They all cared little about how I felt. As a child I just learned to laugh with them rather than get mad and eventually some of the girls stopped acting so silly. For some girls, the silliness turned to anger as boys started to pay attention to me. This was the most difficult part of growing up. A girl who would be my friend one day, would be a thorn in my side the next.I started wearing bras that would slim my figure and it became less of a problem. The difference these bras made when I was a teenager was substantial. My mother understood how important this was to me and was very supportive when shopping for bras.I remember being fifteen years old and was out growing a few Maidenform teen bras. Local department stores offered nothing but nursing bras that would fit my cup size. I was very close to a full D and believe it or not, B was the largest teen size available. This was before my family purchased a computer and had internet access.If you visit Maidenforms website you will see that they still do not make a large bra for teen girls.
A Dutch girl in one of my English classes resorted to using small amounts of masking tape to flatten her chest because her parents could not afford the more expensive nursing bras. She would have to hide in a bathroom stall and remove the tape before going into our schools locker room to make sure the other girls would not make fun of her. After gym class she would re-apply a fresh set of tape and continue with her day - all swollen and bruised. Her name was Leona.
On my sixteenth birthday my uncle bought me a gift card to Sears. I did not know my uncle and he had never met me. He was the family drunk and the joke was that he honestly thought I was a boy and got me the gift card to buy a tool set from Sears. But the Sears near my house did sell nursing bras.
I told my mother about Leona and her daily battle with masking tape. My mother and I took Leona and her mother to Sears and used that gift card to purchase 2 nursing bras for her. Leona and her family moved a few months later. Her father got a better job, god bless his spirit, he tried so very hard to give Leona the best but their family was always poor. I haven’t seen her since but those were the happiest two months of school for both of us. She was a completely different girl.
If by some miracle Leona reads this comment, I would like her to email me. I still live in Birk City Kentucky and am finishing college.
Sara (Hiddenfeet Owner) says:
Charlotte we edited out your physical address and email address to protect you from spam but if we hear from Leona we will glady forward her messages to you. Your typed comment is one of the most inspirational stories that we have ever read here at Hiddenfeet.Thank you so much for sharing with everyone.
*speechless*
I am going to donate old bras to my daughters school this Monday.
Rebecca
I did the whole nursing bra thing when I grew up. Terrified that someone would find out, I destroyed all receipts, bra tags, and never ever told anyone. I don’t even think my mother knew what type of bras I was buying with my allowance.
I remember getting scared once when a girl - Heidi Brown…I’ll never forget her - asked me where I bought my bras from. I quickly told her that I did not know because my mother bought them for me. I did everything I could to ignore her for weeks after our conversation. I even got scared when my mother would answer the phone, thinking it was Heidi or Heidi’s mother asking about my bras.
Funny thing is that a few months later I saw Heidi and her sister together after school. Heidi’s sister was curvy like I was. It turns out that Heidi was just asking me so that she could help younger sister. Her sister grew boobs but Heidi didn’t. I felt so stupid.
DEBORAH
I have thought about running clothing drives like this for my local schools. My children are grown and im sure they would help out. How do I go about asking school authorities?
Lisa my daughter and I usually go through the United Way. They can schedule school drives for all types of clothing if you contact them. They will do the leg work and deal with the principals and legal hassles.
Im sure there are links from this site to your own home town. Best of luck and it really does make a difference. Some of my daughters old clothing - doesnt fit - was in perfect condition and since most stores pay very little for used clothing, it is never worth the trouble to sell it. Donated bras are usually the first item young girls grab with their mothers at these clothing drives. I love watching the glow on their faces as they find something pretty that fits them.
Here in Connecticut there are Hanes and Champion stores that sell large bras but the cheapest ones still cost $29.99 - $39.99 each. Now image if you have two daughers and each need two or three bras each every year for school because their breasts are growing. $250 a year or more for bras is no laughing matter for working parents.
Girls are always snooping around the boxes of bras at my local thrift store. I will donate some of my clothing to them this weekend. I know it shouldn’t take a story like this to inspire me. I should be making the time to do this every month. I am going to donate bras and clothing once a month from now on!
I have donated dozens of bras to my daughters school over the last few years. I know in my heart that it is helping her classmates. I use coupons and sales to find deals on larger sizes and stock up for the biannual clothing drive. The last thing a young woman needs to think about is if her breasts are spilling out of her bra because it is too small.
I found this website by accident. I was searching for deals on the Olga SmoothBack Minimizer Bra in DD sizes. This seems to be a popular bra with teen girls. They also like the Beauty by Bali Lift Underwire bra and Vanity Fair Woman Soft Effects Full-Figure - both in DD. Neither my daughter nor myself have big breasts but we last counted eight girls in her grade alone that are F cup or larger. Three of these girls are members of our church and our families have all become good friends. Katie (my daughter) also knows another dozen girls DD who are always looking for deals on pretty new clothing.
It puts a big smile on my face to read that there is kindness being spread around the world to big breasted girls in need. Young girls need to learn the skill of helping each other out and taking the time to be mindful of each others needs. This website is lovely Sara. I emailed it’s link to a few other parents. I am sure they will find it inspirational as well. God bless!