October 24 is national My Best Winter Skin (MBWS) Day! This unique holiday marks the beginning of a season of giving, education and volunteerism for SOCS members. In the coming months at numerous events around the nation, SOCS members and advocates will distribute dermatologist-developed educational material and donated product samples to raise awareness about optimal winter skin care and generate donations to the SOCS Foundation. Donations will help support innovative research in skin of color dermatology.

Tips for Winter Skin

1. Moisturize daily. Pay attention to areas that are more prone to dryness because of exposure to the outside elements. Moisturize within 3-5 minutes of patting the skin dry after bathing or showering.
2. Think thick. Heavier creams and ointments may be more effective than lotions in colder months.
3. Be gentle. Avoid harsh cleansers that may strip the skin of its natural oils. Use suds-free and fragrance-free soaps.
4. Go cool. Shower or bathe in lukewarm water for no more than 10 minutes at a time.
5. Cover up. Wear gloves, mittens and scarves to protect your skin from the cold and the harsh effects of wind on the skin.
6. Protect skin. Wear a broad-spectrum sunscreen even in the winter.
7. Stay hydrated. It’s important all year long.

Join the MBWS Corps!

SOCS members and partners from across the country are making plans for their own distribution events during the coming winter season. Events are planned in many states including: 

• California
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Kansas
• Louisiana
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Missouri
• New York
• North Carolina
• Pennsylvania
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Virginia
• Washington, D.C. 

We have officially reached the end of our sample bags, there are no more for the current year. Thank you all who signed up to pass them out!

How to Get More Involved in MBWS

• Donate
• Educate
• Volunteer

Donate: We are 92% of the way to our annual goal. Will you help us get 100% of the way and give a gift today? During this season of gratefulness, you might consider giving a gift to the SOCS Foundation in honor of someone who has helped you professionally. Perhaps they were a mentor, a colleague, a favorite professor, or a parent, aunt or uncle, or grandparent who helped with college or med school expenses.

Educate: For those of you who opted in to receive samples, thank you. Many of you have begun giving out your samples and educating your community about best winter skin care. We are eager to see your photos and videos on social media. Please remember to tag SOCS and the campaign and we’ll try to share your posts. The supply of samples went VERY quickly—for the rest of us—watch your social media channels for these hashtags: #MyBestWinterSkin #SOCSMBWS #skinofcolorsociety

Volunteer: For those of you who helped at one of the big MBWS Day events on 10/24, thank you! For those of you who will volunteer with your family, small group from church, office, or friends sometime over the holidays, please take photos or videos, post to your social media channels and tag this campaign with these hashtags #MyBestWinterSkin #SOCSMBWS #skinofcolorsociety. Volunteering doesn’t have to involve handing out samples—your volunteer effort can look any way that you want it to look. Here are a few ideas: you can pack food boxes or deliver meals on wheels, you can visit a pet shelter, or you can go volunteer or donate school supplies at your child’s school, you could even clean up a local park or stream bank. You could donate blood, teach people how to register to vote, start a little free library, rake an elderly neighbor’s leaves, or visit sick kids in the hospital. Just remember, take photos or video, post to social media and tag SOCS and this campaign.

Thank you again. We are grateful for ALL of you.

My Best Winter Skin In the News

Read the latest news about My Best Winter Skin!

Watch social media for posts about MBWS! We hope you will like and share them to raise more awareness of the campaign and the work of the SOCS Foundation. Join the conversation with us on social media: Use #mybestwinterskin #SOCSMBWS and #skinofcolorsociety and tag us @skinofcolorsociety on IG and Facebook and @SkinofColor on X.

SOCS is grateful for the sponsors of our campaign: CeraVe, La Roche-Posay and Restore.