A local group of women are banding together to help ensure that girls in every country get to live their lives to the fullest, one kit at a time.
Days for Girls is an international organization that provides feminine hygiene kits for girls in undeveloped countries that don't otherwise have access to those type of products. Now, Bonnyville woman Larisa de Freitas has started her own branch right here in town.
“I saw it and fell in love with it. I was looking for a purpose for myself with my kids getting older and I realized I can make a bigger impact if I involved my friends and start telling people about it,” said de Freitas. “I have teenage daughters, I cannot imagine putting them in that same situation. I can't imagine myself in that same situation.”
Each year, girls in third-world countries miss the equivalent of two months of school due to their menstrual cycle. Due to the circumstances, it is also common for girls and women to contract diseases and infections. That's where Days for Girls comes in. Thousands of volunteers around the world put together kits that include handmade feminine hygiene products with a number of washable cotton inserts, clean washcloths, underwear and a bar of soap.
On the first Thursday of each month around 18 women gather at the Bonnyville Baptist Church to sew, cut and create 20 kits. Since starting less than a year ago, the local chapter has assembled over 220 kits to send to girls and women in need.
“In this day and age, there's no reason why girls should be missing work or school or not being able to provide for their families because of their menstrual cycle,” said Claudette Popwich, one of the regular volunteers.
She added, “I thought 'well this is easy, I can do a few hours a month' and once I started I thought how can I not, we're empowering girls. I think us girls have to stick together.”
For volunteer Marie Kolody the program offers both a chance to join other local ladies for some social time and the opportunity to do good. Coming from another country herself, Kolody said it is a cause close to her heart.
“I came when I was six-years-old with mom and dad, but we had to scratch. There was no government help or nothing, so I understand what they're going through. It was all yourself, what you made was what you had. I am glad that we have so much that we can help someone who's less fortunate, that makes me feel really good because I know what it feels like.”
In assembly line fashion, the group hand cuts, irons and stitches every piece of fabric that goes into the kit. Every volunteer has hands-on involvement in creating the finished product, which includes a decorative cloth bag to conceal the Ziploc bag kit.
“A lot of places just want money and to me that's the easy way out. So this is a way for me to actually physically do something to help someone out,” said volunteer Michelle Green.
Trudie Nel added, “I think it's so important, we always look after people's stomachs and not about their well-being and that's one of the main reasons I got involved. I want a woman to have dignity and self respect and go into the world with her head held high.”
As a new non-profit organization, the local Days for Girls chapter relies heavily on donations of money and material. De Freitas explained that they don't need a lot of funds, as she is generally able to purchase fabric for a year with $2,000. However, she is always looking for donations of supplies such as hotel-size bars of soap, washcloths and new underwear.
“A lot of the fabric is also just from people's closets if they have grandma's fabric just lying there. We would love to get the community involved, we're very thankful to Flowers by Joanne that is supporting us and the local hotel that gave us washcloths,” said de Freitas.
The group is also in need of more volunteers to help make the kits. De Freitas said sewing skills are not necessary and it's a great way for high school students to get community service hours.
For more information about the Bonnyville chapter of Days for Girls, contact Larisa de Freitas at [email protected].
