home.jpgIzzy, a volunteer for the Nepal Women and Children Service Society, recently contacted us about donating GladRags to orphaned girls.  Here's her description of life for the Nepalese children she works with, and why cloth pads are greatly needed:

The Nepal Women and Children Service Society (NWCSS) is a local co-operative aiming to rescue and support deprived women and children. Established in 2002, the group opened an orphanage in the Jorpati district of Kathmandu. Although the NWCSS are working hard to fund it, this orphanage is in dire need of external donations to offer the children a quality of life beyond the basic necessities.

For the last two years, I have volunteered at the orphanage. The living conditions of the children are incomprehensible to any measurement we might make, but this is not what defines them. Each day, I am greeted by cheeky smiles and requests for chewing gum. They are kids. Despite their desolate environment, they have retained the curiosity and joy we hope for in children. My goal in working with the NWCSS is to maintain that attitude and optimistic view of life.

More than half of the 25 children are girls, many of whom are coming into adolescence. Eight of the fourteen girls are in need of menstrual products. On my last visit, I learned that the eldest girl had been given an old towel to use as a sanitary napkin. As you can imagine, this single towel is hardly a sufficient, hygienic or comfortable means for dealing with menstruation. Another volunteer purchased a small supply of disposable pads for the girls but this is not a long term solution. Aside from the cost of disposable pads being high, there is also no hygienic way of disposing of the pads. The waste from the orphanage is collected in garbage cans and dumped 20 feet from the rear of the home. The heap attracts the expected stray animals and rodents, and is regularly set on fire, the fumes engulfing the orphanage.

You can learn more about the orphanage at this volunteer-run website and easily donate pads through the GladRags website.  Visit our donation page to learn how -- you can even sew your own! Thank you for doing your part to ensure that girls everywhere have access to safe, clean, and comfortable menstrual supplies!