Last Monday, I posted my environmental concerns regarding the disposable sanitary napkins being sent to South African girls as part of a campaign being led by Procter & Gamble. While I applaud their effort in helping the girls there continue to go to school, I am unsettled by sending over so many disposables into areas where incineration is the main method of disposal. As a result of all the reader's support for my suggestion of sending over cloth pads instead, I started contacting aid agencies last week (focusing on appropriate ones who could target areas of need and provide distribution), offering donations to those who could provide the needed abilities.
I got back several very positive responses and started working on a website, Goods 4 Girls. It's been a busy week and since then the website is up, I've got aid organizations on board, and the donations are coming in. It's been very inspiring and I have you all to thank for the encouragement and offers of donations.
You will probably run across posts from other blogs about this project as this is something a lot of us are excited about. It goes beyond our usual environmental wanderings and leads us into humanitarian territory - one where we can have an immediate impact. I think we all can imagine how difficult life would be without monthly protection and providing something that is also sustainable makes this project that much more satisfying.
If you are interested in helping spread the word, you too can help by posting about the project and/or adding one of the linked images to your sidebar (instructions are on the contact page).
So, while there really aren't "operators standing by" (this is the web, after all), there is the website for you to peruse and get a better idea of the problem and how you can donate. So, I encourage you to saunter over, poke around and make a donation if this is something that appeals to you.
[I did have one person suggest that Goods 4 Girls start taking monetary donations for people who only wanted to donate a few dollars and couldn't outright purchase one pad, since they can be expensive. I am looking into doing that, but I'll need to get set up as a non-profit first, and get a bank account second. Donated funds would be used to purchase pads and/or for shipping costs to send the pads to Africa. So, for those of you interested in donating a dollar here or there, I'll keep you all posted!]
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24 Crunchy Thoughts:
This is fantastic - I will definitely post about this on my blog (SurelyYouNest.com). Thanks for being so motivated about this as you seem to be about everything in your life!
I posted the link on my blog and just bought a pack of cloth pads from MamaCloth (Etsy) that should be mailed to you by the end of the week. I also emailed Cara at MamaCloth and gave her the links to your sites so she can look into it more, as I am sure she will be getting lots of business from Goods 4 Girls!
This is such an exciting addition to your blog! Thank you for all you do! :)
RVM
Crunchy, you are a very compassionate person. Thank you for doing this.
I don't know exactly what you have in mind, but if you are planning to set up a nonprofit corporation in Washington, you can do so at the Washington Secretary of State's office here. The state of Washington also requires charities planning on soliciting large sums of money to register and pay an annual fee. You can read a summary of the registration requirements here. If you want your organization to receive tax-exempt status, you will need to apply for this with the IRS -- nonprofit corporations are not automatically tax-exempt. The IRS publishes a FAQ list about applying for tax-exempt status here.
I wish you the best of luck with this project. Let us all know how we can support you.
Great project I will help out in any way I can.
Well, you already know I have a post up on my site. My daughter and I will be sewing pads together as an outreach project. We'll be spreading the word where we can as well. I think the way the blog community has come together to support this effort is very exciting.
You're amazing, I love you and all of your Crunchy goodness.
I have posted about this on my blog, and word is spreading in my circles, too. I've been thinking about learning to sew for some time now, and your inspiring ability to DO something has motivated me to get to it! I'll be sewing some pads just as soon as I can get a decent seam sewn, lol. And btw, I'm friends with one of the owners of LunaPads and will be passing this info on to her.
I sent the link to my homeschool community. I don't know what kind of response you'll get, but I do have a mom friend who already expressed an interest in sewing (although not using herself :) cloth sanitary napkins.
I'm impressed with all you've done ... and so FAST, too :). Way to go, girl! I'm pulling out my sewing machine today. It's time to get the plans out of my head and into reality.
Wow...that was fast! I will definitely be posting this on my blog!
Wouldn't donations of Diva Cups or Keepers make even more sense? Much less washing and fuss...would you take donations of those, as well?
eatclosetohome - that was my initial impression as well. I address what the story is with DivaCups on the FAQ page.
I think the idea of the monetary donation option is great. If you could get it hooked up to PayPal--I think you'd have a great response.
eatclosetohome--along with cultural taboos, female circumcision is still widely practiced in many parts of Africa making insertion of anything into the vagina excruciatingly painful. Reusable pads are the best option according to some work friends who were born/raised in Africa.
Great idea Crunchy. You are an unbelieveably great person for all that you do.
About the Diva cups, I would be hesitant to donate them to the African girls. I'm not sure how culturally acceptable it would be to go see a doctor to remove it, or to have help removing it, if it got stuck.
I can't wear Diva cups because they just disappear when I insert them. I tried twice, CAREFULLY following the instructions. It was *extremely* difficult to remove both times.
I'd hate to see that happen to someone who doesn't have easy access to a doctor, in case it takes a pro to remove it.
I'm new here at the Crunchy Chicken blog and I just wanted to say that you are ON THE BALL. One week from thoughtful post to an entirely new website (and non-profit status on the way!).
I'm not sure if it inspires me or just makes me really really tired.
BTW, I'm on board with these. Thank you.
Hooray! I need to order some PUL and then I'll start sewing. Thank you so much for coordinating this! You're amazing.
One other thought, Crunchy -- If you wanted to establish this program without the administrative hassle of setting up and maintaining your own nonprofit entity, you could work with an existing nonprofit organization to run the "back office" side of the program for you. In other words, you could set up the "Good 4 Girls" program at XYZ Nonprofit Agency. You would publicize the program through your web site, but monetary donations, etc. would be sent to the existing nonprofit you were working with, and that organization would receive and distribute donations and do all of the other behind the scenes work.
Of course, you would have to select the organization you partnered with carefully, and you wouldn't have the control that you would by setting up your own nonprofit. The upside is that if you found a reliable partner, this could save you a lot of time and effort that you could use to promote the program and do other things important to you. I know from personal experience that establishing and running a nonprofit organization can be rewarding but also can be a huge drain on time.
I'm not trying to send you in one direction or another -- just something to consider.
Crunchy, you are an inspiration.
Have you heard of these people? Might be worth checking into...
Thanx Crunchy; this is great! I'm looking for instructions; I can sew a few of these for the girls starting mid-March, once I get the sewing room up and running. Well do I remember my own younger days..... I will be posting about this, plus Depletion and Abundance, on my own newly-created blog!
You are amazing! As if your daily musings didn't already impress & entertain me, I can't believe you got this program up & running. I will definitely spread the word and send my donation. Thank you for your continued inspiration to
"Be the change that you want to see in the world" (my favorite f/ Ghandi) Thanks Crunchy!
Crunchy, you continue to amaze and inspire me! I've blogged about it too, and I'm just trying to decide which of the companies to order the pads through. I may end up using one not on the list - Luna Pads, if that's ok. I have some and can vouch for how well they hold up.
Crunchy for President!
Thanks, Theresa! You can buy the pads through whoever you like. I just haven't gotten around to contacting everyone yet :)
Can we please not refer to it as "female circumsision"? It's female genital mutilation.
You amaze me.
Yay!
I don't really have a blog or website but I have been posting in the forums and message bords I frequent (firstly, tons of positive responses. secondly, I have been posting more than ever because I, having read everything before I posted it had all my questions answered. They, however, didn't. So its been a lot of copy/pasting from the FAQ and blog. whats more exciting to me is that i haven't had a question that you haven't already addressed the answer too.)
Thanks so much for spearheading this for us Cruchy.
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