Days for Girls is a worldwide organisation that is made up of over
180 chapters and teams that produce kits to provide girls in areas of
need with sustainable sanitary hygiene products. We were first made
aware of the organisation when we attended the Rotary International
Convention in Sydney in 2014 and Kathy decided at that time that this
was something that she wanted to be involved with and subsequently set
up Days for Girls Gold Coast with Bianca Surch.
The kits that are provided through the Days for Girls project are
significant. Instead of having DAYS without school, DAYS without
income, DAYS without leaving the house and instead of girls having to
use leaves, mattress stuffing, newspaper, corn husks, rocks, anything
they can find, girls do not have to miss out up to 2 months of school
every year as they do now. This is, in itself, a surprising but
instrumental key to social change for women all over the world.
The kits are made to very strict guidelines and are made up of two
sewn shields, eight sewn liners, a face washer, bar of soap, pair of
panties, zip lock bag and a fabric bag for storing it all. The Gold
Coast Team was only formed this year and has just held its first Sewing
Day with eighteen people involved but there is much more to the project
that just sewing. The materials involved need to be sourced, washed and
ironed and then the kits made up. Once completed, the kits need to then
get overseas to the chosen community and all of this takes funds so fund
raising is a big challenge as well.
The Gold Coast Team is currently working on stage 1 and has the goal
of getting 20 kits to Cambodia, 30 to Vanuatu and also working with an
orphanage in India. We have just had word of another group who will be
contacting us for 500 kits to go to a rural area of Cambodia.
Some very exciting news is that we have been approached by a local
consultant for doTERRA, a company that sells essential oils & has a
strong connection with Days for Girls in the US. She recently came back
from a conference in the US where she was introduced to Days for Girls
and came home and approached our team offering support in many areas but
she will also have her team of ladies to support us.
The Days for Girls Gold Coast is excited to be working with the
Rotary e-Club of NextGen and welcomes any assistance from club members
with support in areas of need. There will be regular posts on both the
Days for Girls Gold Coast Facebook page and on the club's Facebook page
but there is also a monthly newsletter being produced that can be
subscribed to here - http://eepurl.com/bzNnrP
For more information please contact: Kathy and Bruce Rogers.