IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME!

 Our Pause

Mostly thanks to COVID and then losing our wonderful workspace, our Eugene/Springfield volunteers have not been meeting together since early 2020.  Several of you jumped in to sew hundreds of masks, and still more have been working on kit components at home.  Thank you so much!  

Through Days for Girls International, we've been contributing our kits to huge distributions to victims of major tragedies--earthquake victims, refugees, etc.  These kits and components always need to find a ride to or DfG Collection PointNorth Salt Lake City to avoid shipping costs from Eugene, so please let me know if you're ever heading that way and able to drop off some boxes for us.  This spring, the components we contribute are going to girls and women in Gaza, Honduras, Cuba and at the Mexican border.

One of the reasons that made volunteering with Days for Girls so rewarding for me was the wonderful people I met at our monthly workdays.  I've really missed that since we last gathered in February 2020.

For about 8 years, we had held our workdays at Our Sewing Room at 5th and Main in Springfield, an amazing set-up for us.  Since that building was sold, I've been hoping to find a new place to work as a group once it felt safer to gather. I finally rented a small house near me, and I've set up our new workspace there.  It's in Eugene, a few blocks south of Harlow Rd.  Definitely not as roomy as Our Sewing Room was, but I'm excited about it and getting to work together again in smaller groups.  If you have a small group who wants to work together on components there, please contact me about setting that up.

Because it's much less spacious, I'm requesting RSVPs for our gatherings.  And because some of our volunteers are vulnerable or live with someone who is, only fully vaccinated folks please, or those flashing a recent negative test. 

I'll be notifying everyone on our email list soon about some upcoming workdays.  If you weren't on that list in the past and would like to be now, please email me at dfgeugene@gmail and ask me to add you.

Keep in mind that Tuesday, May 28 is Menstrual Hygiene Day.  The date was chosen a few years ago to focus on the worldwide need to eliminate period poverty, with May, the 5th month of the year, representing the average 5-day period and 28 representing a typical monthly cycle.  If you'd like to contribute to Days for Girls' efforts in celebration of MHD, you can do so by:

• working with our chapter volunteers to make kit components
• delivering kits to our center in North Salt Lake City
• donating washcloths (medium weight, darker colors, no microfiber)
• donating underwear (ask me for details--you can buy them online through DfG and save shipping costs)
• contributing monetarily to our chapter's efforts here or by check to Days for Girls with Eugene Chapter in the memo line--bring to a work session  or mail to 

                Days for Girls International 

                P.O. Box 2622

                Mount Vernon, WA 98273.  

          (Either way, you'll receive a receipt for tax purposes.)

Hoping to see you soon!

END OF NOVEMBER

 WOOT!  WOOT!

I just got an email that Days for Girls International, one of five finalists for https://orgimpactawards.org's award for a nonprofit's work in combating the pandemic . . .  has won! Our Founder Celeste Mergen's interview is here on Facebook. 

Early in the spring, Celeste asked DfG teams and chapters to make masks to help in the pandemic.  "Masks for Millions," the campaign was called, and our volunteers heeded the call.   Around the world, masks were made by our groups and widely distributed.   Although restrictions ended many travel plans, masks were distributed locally as needed and our foreign enterprises were able to continue kit making and distributions AND also provided masks.

MASKS FOR PANAMA

Masks continue to be needed, worldwide.  Days for Girls volunteers are providing at least 10,000 masks to be distributed by Floating Doctors in Panama, along with kits.  If you go to their website or Facebook page, you'll see how active this group is in delivering healthcare to the remote coastal communities of Central America.

When I asked if any of you would like to make masks for Panama, the response was great--people not only stepped up but told mask-making friends.  We'll be contributing hundreds from our Eugene/Springfield Chapter!  Shipping in the next few days, and these sewers have been dropping by with bags and boxes of masks.  So fun to see the variety of styles and fabrics and even sizes!  Thank you SO much, mask makers, and those of you who contributed to the shipping costs!  

GIVING TUESDAY

We appreciate your donations absolutely anytime of the year, and it's what we use to support our work year round.  If you're looking for someplace to make a Giving Tuesday or year-end donation, and our Days for Girls chapter comes to mind, here's where you can do that online.  You'll receive a receipt by mail in case you need that for tax purposes.  

And while we're on the subject of donations, I recently updated my trust, and included our DFG Eugene/Springfield Chapter this time around, as well as some impressive nonprofits who have distributed our kits.  Think about us when you're working on a will or trust.

GUATEMALA

Guatemala was hit hard this month by two hurricanes (Eta and Iota) this month.  Over 17,000 people are displaced, and Days for Girls has been asked to provide 10,000 of our menstrual kits as well as masks.  Shipping isn't a good option, but purchasing them from a local enterprise is.  

If you'd like to contribute to the purchase of these kits, please let me know when you make a donation.  Days for Girls Distribution would like to place just one order from all of the teams, chapters and volunteers wishing to help.

OCTOBER 2020

UPDATES ON BEIRUT PROJECT

Huge thanks to Becky and her husband who drove complete kits from the Medford, Central Oregon and Eugene/Springfield Chapters to the collection center in Utah! 

Boxes of kits from Medford with our nine bags

Kits from Central Oregon, Medford and
Eugene/Springfield, delivered in Utah.

Then I heard from one of the other collection centers that they were short on bags, so I mailed off a bunch to them, and then the third center reported being short on undies and Ziplocs, so we helped with those too.  Nine big bags full of kits by highway, and three large flat rate boxes by mail.  Thank you all for the ways you contributed to this!  

What a great DFG-wide effort this was.  So many kits were donated that Americares didn't have space to ship them all to Beirut.  Consequently, our efforts will also benefit women and girls in Honduras and elsewhere:

Since August 8th 2020, DFG volunteers and supporters have...

Fundraised $26,414.48 USD 

Ordered 2000 DfG Kits and 3500 masks from the DfG Lebanon Enterprises  run by Syrian Refugees for the emergency response 

Collected 27,755 DfG Kits from 186 Chapters and Teams: 

• 12,565 Kits have been shipped to Lebanon for emergency and humanitarian response  led by DfG Lebanon 

• 5,880 Kits have been shipped to Honduras for COVID-19 response 

• 9,310 Kits have been shipped to Americares. They are assessing the needs of their in country partners and will be selecting the locations most in need to receive these Kits.  

Together, we are bringing comfort and dignity to women and girls during this challenging time. 

Thank you for being adaptive, creative, and collaborative. It’s truly  incredible what we can achieve when we all work together! 

Please realize that what this means is that the generosity of DFG volunteers was way underestimated!  It's wonderful that so more women than hoped for will receive kits.  I'm very proud that we were able to be a part of this effort.  Periods don't stop for pandemics, and I think we were all relieved that we could be a part of getting kits in the hands of women and girls in need, even with all the other challenges of 2020.

IN CHINA

Nice article about some girls working to end period poverty in one of the poorest parts of China.  

IN VANATU

Volunteers are stepping up to change the world for women and girls – especially in the face of crisis.

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Today's example comes from the frontlines of Vanuatu: the Pacific Island Nation that was struck by category 5 Cyclone Harold in April. It was the second strongest cyclone to ever hit in the country.

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Homes were destroyed. Families displaced. And menstruators – now burdened by a pandemic AND a natural disaster – struggled to meet basic needs.

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That’s when DfG Australia Chapters and Teams made magic happen! Despite dealing with their own lockdown, volunteers mobilized in a matter of days to reach women and girls on the island with 𝟑,𝟑𝟎𝟎 𝐊𝐢𝐭𝐬 in partnership with

Bridging Health Inc.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Well, our operations are certainly different than they were pre-pandemic.  Some of us are still plugging away on components.  My back-of-driveway porch has seen many socially distanced handoffs and returns of work to and from you wonderful volunteers who are able to continue to work on kit components at home.

Let me know if you have time and interest in doing some tasks at home.  It's not nearly as fun as gathering at Our Sewing Room, but our goal is the same.  

OCTOBER 11

It's that time again--The International Day of the Girl!  Might I suggest you celebrate by doing something that will benefit a less-fortunate girl somewhere in the world?  If you choose to do that through Days for Girls and want to  make a contribution to our Eugene Chapter . . . you can  make a contribution by check (email me for address), or online here.  Receipts available either way!  Donations of underwear are always welcome--Girls' sizes 10-16, Women's 5-7. (No bikini/thong/boy shorts styles) Let's make every day The International Day of the Girl!

BEIRUT

BEIRUT, LEBANON NEEDS OUR HELP

• 

With 300,000 people displaced, the need is great.  There are a few ways you can help get kits into the hands of the women and girls who need them:

• Make a financial donation that will sponsor kits from the DfG Enterprises in Lebanon.  The goal is $10,000 immediately for 1000 kits.
• Find somebody who'd be able to drive a van-full of kits contributed by Eugene and other Oregon teams and chapters to the collection center in Utah.  Of course any size vehicle is helpful, but I think already 4 chapters in Oregon have said they'd contribute kits if we can get the kits a ride, so we can easily fill a van.  They need to be in Centerville, Utah by August 21.
• Make a financial donation to our chapter to help with gas (and possibly a rental van) or postage getting our kits to the collection point in Utah.

The kits contributed from U.S. chapters and teams will be placed on the Emergency Americares shipment to Lebanon. Any additional Kits beyond what can fit on the Americares shipment, will be allocated to other countries where Americares works with partners who are responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.

UPDATE! We had a wonderful volunteer step up to drive kits to Utah. Donations for gas money appreciated!

WE LOVE THE FEEDBACK!

Neema Namadamu, Head of our Maman Shujaa Enterprise in Democratic Republic of Congo, said it best:

The DfG Kit is so much more than a period product! It’s a pathway to 𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐲, 𝐝𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲; a slayer of harmful stigmas and taboos. Something beautiful and dependable that a girl can rely on day after day. A tool for celebrating the journey into womanhood.  (Spacing is wonky--keep scrolling after this photo)

THE VALUE OF EDUCATION

Days for Girls International

17 hrs · 

Did you know? Education was declared a universal human right 𝟕𝟎 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐠𝐨. Yet countless girls today 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 face barriers to staying in school, including (but not limited to) menstrual inequity:

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🌼 In India, 23% of girls drop out of school because they lack access to toilets and sanitary pads.

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🌼 A study in Ethiopia reported that 56% of girls were absent from school because they did not have menstrual health supplies.

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🌼 Another study in Bangladesh showed that 42% of girls reported missing at least one day of school a month due to menstruation. 

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#Periodpoverty and school absenteeism are undeniably linked – and our calling is to shift this harmful paradigm on a global scale. 𝐖𝐞'𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥, and on the path to their best and brightest future. 

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Who’s with us? 🙋‍♀️ #MenstrualHealthMonday

SUMMER 2020

WHAT A YEAR!

Out of caution, and in hopes that our decisions will help this be over soon, our chapter has not had any in-person gatherings since February.  This will continue until further notice.  Please stay safe and well.

My 2020 plate has been filled with unexpected and frustrating surprises.  I'm hopefully near the end of the months-long inconveniences caused by a plumbing malfunction,  Flooring has been replaced in three rooms, damaged walls repaired, and little by little furniture and boxes of fabric and sewing supplies are making their way back into places where I can access them.

 Some of you have made masks, through Days for Girls, another group, or just for your friends and families.  I think this need will continue. Do let me know if you need supplies.

Some of you continue sewing our kit components at home.   I'm happy to prepare homework for interested folks.

A large majority of would-be travelers worldwide are staying off airplanes, meaning our kits and supplies aren't getting to their recipients when we'd expected.   Once the travel doors open again, we'll be ready.

NEW POLICY

Days for Girls has a new policy about not sending kits to areas where there is a Days for Girls Enterprise that could fill the request.  We've always said that our goal is to put ourselves out of business.  This will mean we won't be providing kits in competition with local DfG Enterprises, who rely on filling those requests to support themselves, and are well trained to provide the education piece in the native language. It's wonderful for them to create successful business models while educating and providing kits for girls and women in their areas.

ANCIENT WAYS

As mentioned earlier, we had a request for volunteers to make masks out of some African fabrics.  These are being made available as a fundraiser to help a community in Zimbabwe deal with Covid-19.  I spent several days cutting African fabrics, finding and cutting coordinating fabric for linings and ties, as well as lightweight interfacing for these masks.  Thanks to those of you who picked up kits to make masks for this project.  You can see info on the Ancient Ways website

GREAT INTERVIEW

Celeste Mergens, the founder and head of Days for Girls is interviewed by an Australian on this podcast.  It's informative and heartwarming . . . and long.  Carve out some time, get comfortable, and be encouraged by the impact of what we do.  It's here.

IT'S ALMOST TIME!

Yes, I know you've been anticipating since last year  . . . August 5 is National Underwear Day!  This is a time of year that stores like Target and Walmart usually have their back-to-school undies sales, or sometimes later in the month.  Some years we've been able to get girls' panties for 50¢ a pair in special bonus packs.  Women's prices under a dollar each are good.  We use girls' sizes 10 to 16, and women's up to size 5 to 7. Styles that work with our shields are bikini, briefs and hipsters (no boy shorts or thongs).  The darker the color, the better, but they can be dyed.  We avoid prints with animals.  Many packs of girls' undies come with prints depicting animals, and those end up donated to or swapped with another nonprofit.

Keep your eyes open for online sales!  Or in-store if you're brave enough.

REFUGEE PROJECT

Remember the 527 kits we contributed to go to refugees in four countries last fall?  Here's a report on those distributions:

Refugee Project Update

Last year, Chapters and Teams collectively contributed 46,571 DfG Kits to the Chapter and Team Refugee Project. We're excited to share an update below.   DfG Lebanon  In collaboration with the 3 DfG Lebanon Enterprises, Chapters and Teams sent 4500 DfG Kits to Lebanon. An additional 2050 Kits were purchased from the Enterprises with the funds raised and a grant from Goldman Sachs, taking the total to 6530 DfG Kits.   Distributions were impacted by political unrest and then by COVID-19. Despite this, Lebanon Country Coordinator Khayrieh and the Enterprise Leaders adapted and have continued distributions in partnership with several local organizations and UNFPA, following all local protocols, including smaller groups, social distancing, and hygiene and safety precautions.   In addition, the Enterprises have also been receiving orders from several organizations in Lebanon including Concern Worldwide, Oxfam, and ReHope Korea, increasing the number of refugees receiving DfG Kits and education. They also pivoted to the needs within their community, adding masks to their production. To date they have sewn and sold over 1000 masks! Below are some photos of DfG Lebanon in action distributing Chapters and Teams Kits to Syrian refugees (the first two photos are pre-COVID-19).

A video and thank you message from DfG Lebanon Enterprise Leaders! You can follow the DfG Lebanon facebook page HERE for updates.

World Vision We collectively contributed 42,071 DfG Kits to World Vision in Australia, Canada, and the US. They planned to send the Kits to Afghanistan, South Sudan, and Somalia. Due to the high volume of Kits received, they were able to add a fourth location, also sending DfG Kits to Iraq! Afghanistan The DfG Kits have arrived in Afghanistan and the World Vision Field Teams have begun distributing them. They have received very positive feedback. “I didn’t know how important menstrual hygiene management was. I have never talked to anyone about it due to shame.  In the past, I felt I was filthy and that this blood was a sign of impurity because I had no idea what this blood was for and why we had to experience it for 7 days per month. Now I know how to take care of my body and no longer experience shame from menstruation because it is a sign of a healthy body.” - 15-year-old Kit recipient. You can read the full impact article HERE. DfG was also highlighted as World Vision's Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene partner in THIS article.   Somalia After shipping delays, the Kits have arrived and the World Vision Field Teams are about to begin distributions. South Sudan and Iraq Unfortunately due to COVID-19, the Kits are currently stuck at customs. The World Vision Field Teams are working hard to get them released and are at the ready to begin distributing them. They have reported that they are needed now more than ever. We will continue to provide updates, photos, and videos as things progress! Thank you to all who contributed to making this project a reality. What a difference YOU have made!