Women Helping Women

So while I was doing some research for food storage (specifically what kinds of sanitary supplies to store) I came across something that just blew me away. In developing countries, girls only have rags or newspapers to use when they have their periods, or even worse they have nothing at all! This makes it difficult for them to go to school on the days that they are menstruating. 

Some companies are providing disposable sanitary supplies to some areas which is good, but has a downside. There are no public waste facilities and so the pads, tampons and covers end up being burned which releases harmful toxins into the environment. They also would have to depend on an outside source for their sanitary supplies instead of being self-reliant once they had the reusable pads.

I thought it would be neat to challenge each member of the blog to make 6 reusable cloth pads to donate to Goods 4 Girls (and if you are feeling ambitious, 3 zippered wet bags to carry wet or dry pads in). There are a variety of patterns to choose from and they don't look too hard to make. If you feel too intimidated by sewing to make them yourself, you might also consider donating money to the cause or buying cloth pads from an online store and they will mail them to Goods 4 Girls for you.

I am so grateful that I can drive to the drugstore and buy myself sanitary supplies whenever I want. After reading about these girls, I felt like a spoiled brat because I complain a lot about my period. I have sanitary supplies, hot running water, soap, wipes, Midol and Ben and Jerry's to help me get through my period. I can't imagine having to sit in a hut on a pile of newspaper for days while I wait for my period to end. I feel so fortunate that I live where I live in the pleasant circumstances that I live in!

I think we could do a lot of good with a little effort. You can use fabric you already have as long as it is clean. You might have to buy some waterproof fabric and snaps or velcro and zippers, but the cost should be minimal. If you don't have fabric on hand, many fabric stores sell remnants for much cheaper. Some of the recommended fabrics are flannel, cotton T-shirt material and PUL.

I think this would also be a wonderful humanitarian aid project to suggest to your Relief Society Enrichment Supervisor (my calling in my ward) if you are LDS.

Are you gals in? I think a good deadline would be the end of January after the holidays are over. Does that sound reasonable?

Complete information and instructions can be found at Goods 4 Girls.