A group of volunteers and businesses is working to combat the shortage of feminine hygiene products available for homeless women in the area with an online campaign that’s gaining traction on Facebook.
Dianna Kretzschmar, founder of Friends of the Elder Justice Center, organized #Every28Days, a monthlong effort to collect pads and tampons for Share’s Women in Transitions Program.
“Women don’t have access to these products,” she said. “This is such a need.”
Local businesses and government offices this month set up pink Waste Connection bins or other collection bins in highly visible locations bearing the hashtag #Every28Days, a reference to women’s menstrual cycle running every 28 days. Donations can be made at any of the sites, as well as at a Period Party at Garage Bar and Grille at 1101 W. Fourth Plain Blvd., marking the culmination of the campaign.
And yes, bar owner Kevin Kloewer said, bloody marys are on the menu.
The drive has come with a healthy dose of cheekiness and jokes, organizers say, but is rooted in a serious cause: shelters and programs for homeless women notoriously lack the feminine hygiene products women need to make it through each month.
Kim Hash, director of development and communications at Share, estimates the organization needs 3,000 boxes of feminine hygiene products every year to provide for the women it serves. In food and hygiene drives, however, those items often go forgotten.
That can be an embarrassing challenge for women on the streets, who can be forced to use toilet paper, newspapers or plant matter while on their period, as well as students who use the Family and Community Resource Centers at local elementary schools. Share provides food and supplies for those programs, and Hash said some centers have to ration out a limited amount of pads and tampons to girls.
But so far so good, organizers say, with several bins already being filled with products. Local politicians and leaders, including every member of the Clark County council, have posed for photos next to collection bins with red signs bearing the message “I support #Every28Days.”
“This gives me hope we can flood them with products,” Hash said.
The Period Party at Garage Bar and Grille will run from noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday and will feature food and drink specials, raffle items and auction items. Raffle winners will be announced at 6 p.m. Pink bins will be collected from most featured businesses by 3 p.m. Monday, but donations can be dropped off at the Garage Bar and Grill through Tuesday.
“Women need to unite,” Kretzschmar said. “Let’s unite behind our sisters.”
