We're giving this a whirl!
Girls and women are met with challenges with their monthly cycle. The cost of manufactured feminine hygiene products is prohibitive and the garbage generated can not go into the tanks of our town toilets. Usually most resort to using rags.
We have been considering piloting the use of reusable sanitary pads for some time now and we are grateful that the perfect opportunity presented itself.
Through a series of fortunate circumstances, we have ended up with 58 kits made by Christine Owen (with some help from her sister, Edwina Sutherland). A thanks also to Ivanna Todd and friends and PH for their roles in making this donation possible.
This pilot project will be headed by nurses from our local clinic and the teens will have educational sessions.
The kits were sent to our shipper on May 16th and it will take two months before they arrive in Dekpor. Stay tuned for updates.
We are truly thankful for the chance to give this a try! Thank you, Christine!
UPDATE:
The shipment was picked up on July 16th, and the following day, the local nurses were contacted. They were thrilled as they had all just been involved in a conference that promoted the use of reusable pads! They were already trained which meant they were entirely confident in sharing their knowledge with a group of students.
On July 20th, the library was filled with girls while the female staff and a nurse from our local clinic held an in-depth workshop to ensure girls not only understand their menstrual cycle, but also how to properly use the pads.
There is great interest and there was much excitement as the kits were distributed! We are so thankful for the opportunity to finally pilot this important initiative!
OCTOBER UPDATE:
Christine and Carol finally met! Wonderful Christine donated another 24 pads/liners/bags and DSDO will look after obtaining the underwear, soap, and washcloths. We had a donation of drawstring bags from 4Imprint which will contain a kit for each individual girl.
DECEMBER UPDATE:
Christine has done it again! This time, thanks to the Kits4Girls campaign, we are able to cover the expenses and the most awesome Christine Owen has been donating her time and talent to sew for us! On the 29th, Carol visited Christine in Mount Albert and picked up another set of 40 pads/liners/bags! These will travel back to Dekpor with Linda in February. A new album will be started for 2023 to continue this most important initiative! Kits4Girls is a hit!
