Project Period

Project Period is an ongoing drive to collect and distribute tampons, sanitary pads and reusable menstrual cups to women and girls in need – and an advocacy effort to end the stigma and mystery surrounding menstruation and women’s bodies with the ultimate goal of changing policies in order to make these products more affordable and accessible to all who need them.

Two-thirds of the 16.9 million low-income women in the US could not afford menstrual products in the past year, with a half of this needing to choose between menstrual products and food.

-Michel J, Mettler A, Schönenberger S, Gunz D. Period poverty: why it should be everybody’s business. Journal of Global Health Reports.

Period Poverty

Why access to menstrual products should be available to all:

  • Menstrual products are costly. One estimate puts women’s expenditures on menstrual products at $150 or more per year.

  • Menstrual products cannot be purchased with SNAP or WIC benefits.

  • Without access to menstrual products, women and girls may turn to make-shift alternatives like cloth, rags, diapers, or paper as a substitute.

  • Menstrual products aren’t typically donated to shelters and food banks, even though they are an essential need.

A recent study found that 64 percent of the women surveyed had been unable to afford period products during the previous year and 21 percent experienced this problem on a monthly basis. Almost half had times during the past year when they had to choose between food and period products.

How you can help:

Please consider donating to help our initiative of removing barriers to menstrual product access and achieve our goal of providing Project Period services to those in need across Butler County. To make a donation or volunteer your time, please call the YWCA office at (724) 287-5709.

Let’s Work Together.

Contact us to set up a Project Period distribution event at your organization.