First of all, I'd love to take a moment to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Thanks so much for your interest in the Every Girl project. It's been a busy few months and we're really excited to get to share some of it with you here!
It’s been a really fun and action packed few months for the project. I’m so thankful for the brilliant team and for all that we’ve achieved together. It’s so exciting to see how many people have been empowered with vital knowledge about women’s health since we began the project and we love that we get to continue!
Whilst our original plan for the period underwear we had been making (pictured in the bags) was to sell them in communities for a reduced price, to encourage a sense of ownership, we haven't let this hold us back from giving this gift to some of the most vulnerable women in our communities. We learnt that because the underwear were a form of menstrual product, we would need to have them officially tested, which would be a long and expensive process.
However, we decided that instead, we would give two pairs of each underwear in a handmade bag, to some women who are more vulnerable in one of JENGA's projects. Period underwear is something which many in the Western world now use regularly, for many reasons, such as a reduced environmental impact, comfort and ease, but they are not currently available anywhere in Uganda. That is why it was such a treat to get to share these products with 40 of our friends. We can't wait to give out more pairs to other groups in the new year. A massive thank you to Lydia from Made My Wardrobe who shared her suppliers with us and let us use her sewing pattern.
As you can see from the photos above, Beatrice (top left and sewing at the left machine in the photo below) was so excited to give away the packs, after having lovingly handcrafted them herself once a week, alongside Naomi (sewing at the right machine in photo below) whilst Rose (presenting in the pink dress in top right photo) ran a brilliant session for the 40 ladies on menstrual health. As I work more on the admin side of the project, so the team are able to work on the field, it was so fun to see Beatrice and Rose doing such a wonderful job running the class, sharing this vital information, as well as observing how much people in the communities were enjoying the training session.
The schools work continues to go brilliantly with Ketty, our schools worker, having trained in 12 different schools. We have continued to have great feedback when returning to check on the schools progress and we love hearing that the teachers we have taught have in turn trained the pupils (including boys in some schools too!) and often their own children too!
We have also had two more groups complete our 9 week women's health course. It is always fun to celebrate together with a certificate and a fizzy drink, and we are hopeful that this course will continue to better equip the families of those who attend to better communicate and to plan for each child and empowered to know how to better support themselves. Timothy has been doing a fantastic job and it's been great to hear that one of the groups consisted of over 60 members! Our next group has just begun and we're excited for all the course has for them!
It has been so special to see the continued enthusiasm for the Every Girl project and our trainings in communities. One of our other JENGA programmes has been using our training with rural schools on the mountains, reaching many girls who would otherwise be unable to afford or access sanitary wear. Beatrice and Rose were also able to train a group of 100 trainee vicars in how to make pads and menstrual health. It is really exciting to see so many vicars passionate about the importance of sharing these skills with their congregations and communities and to see the training being used in different areas beyond Mbale!
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