EDMONTON — When most people think of the food bank, they immediately think of donating food. But the organization also collects household and personal items and thanks to a unique event in Edmonton, the local food bank has been stocked up with feminine hygiene products.
A silent auction and fundraiser called the Period Party was recently held to highlight and address the challenge of accessing menstrual products.
Organized by four Edmontonians, the Period Party collected nearly 100,000 tampons, pads and menstrual cups for Edmonton’s Food Bank.
“The food bank often doesn’t have anything to provide to its clients, so when we saw the need at the food bank we decided that we would do a fundraiser,” said Jill Davies-Shaw, co-organizer of the Period Party.
“Menstrual hygiene products, other kinds of hygiene products, those are things that we don’t always think about as a need at the food bank but they are. People come and they request menstrual products as one of their extra add-on products.”
Marjorie Bencz, executive director of Edmonton’s Food Bank, said the organization is extremely pleased with the generous donation of feminine products.
“They go out very quickly when we do get them because they are an item that we do need and people are requesting them.”
In total, 50,294 tampons, 42,659 pads, and 47 menstrual cups were donated to Edmonton’s Food Bank.
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