Dignity U Wear: New Clothes Start New Lives

Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, Dignity U Wear aims to positively impact the lives of people in need by distributing dignity in the form of brand new clothing. Dignity U Wear works in several communities across America, collaborating with other great social service agencies to give clothing at the right time, such as the first day of school, before a job interview, or in coordination with medical care. By not randomly handing out garments to people in need, the impact of clothing on lives is maximized. Dignity U Wear's areas of emphasis include school children in need; veterans who are seeking employment or have become homeless; and women and girls who have suffered emotional and/or sexual abuse, domestic violence, or are at risk to drop out of school.


Dignity U Wear was founded in 2000 by renowned hotelier, philanthropist, and Holocaust survivor Henri Landwirth. Born in 1927 in Antwerp, Belgium, he was shuffled among five Nazi concentration camps from the ages of 13 to 18. After the war, Landwirth worked his way to America as a deck laborer, settled in New York, and received a draft notice. Following his service in the United States Army, he took a course in hotel management and joined the hotel industry. More than five decades later, he retired from a successful career that saw him work a number of positions, from bellboy to manager to owner.

Having dedicated himself to helping those in need for the past 20 years, Landwirth started Dignity U Wear because he knows what it's like to be stripped of personal dignity and not have any clothes. “After I left the camps, I was 18 years old and I was homeless. And I promised myself that one day, God willing, I would be able to help other people not to suffer as much as I did.”

To date, Dignity U Wear has distributed 8 million pieces of brand new clothing to over 610,000 people in the United States.