Josh Armstrong, director of the Gonzaga-in-Zambezi program, is bringing the female hygiene kits for the second consecutive year. Dale Abendroth, assistant professor of nursing, once again provided the kits that she made with the help of husband Mike Lenski and experienced quilting friends. The team, which also sent 75 kits to Zambezi last year, used leftover fabric from quilting projects to make the kits.
“My friends and I make the shields and liners. The students on the health team make the arrangements for the other items to complete the kits,” Abendroth said. “It’s not only satisfying to be a part of a worthy service project, it has been a very enriching experience personally.”
Each kit contains two shields (which hold a liner in place), eight flannel liners, two pairs of panties, a wash cloth, bar of soap, 1 gallon zip-lock bag and a drawstring cinch bag to discretely carry the supplies. The shields and liners are washable and sustainable, and the kits last up to three years. Abendroth and Armstrong decided to provide 75 kits due to weight considerations for the small aircraft that fly into Zambezi.
Abendroth became inspired to develop the kits after reading a magazine article in 2013 about the nonprofit grassroots organization Days for Girls International, which partners with and supports other organizations in efforts to create a more dignified, free and educated world through access to lasting feminine hygiene solutions. A global network of thousands of volunteers and supporters on six continents has helped women and girls in more than 75 countries.
Due to the lack of affordable or accessible feminine hygiene products, many girls in Africa and other countries are forced to miss significant time at school every year. Often girls will use leaves, corn husks, mattress stuffing, newspaper or other alternatives – but still miss up to two months of school ever year. This issue is a key to social change for women worldwide.
Providing female hygiene kits and education for the women and girls in Zambezi is one of the many ways the Gonzaga-in-Zambezi month-long summer study abroad course helps empower and foster independence within the Zambian communities. For the past nine years, Gonzaga undergraduates in the Comprehensive Leadership Program have been learning about cultural leadership alongside rural Zambia villagers. Essential to this learning is student involvement in community development projects, including leadership development training, literacy projects in local schools, health education partnerships, and basic computer education.
Abendroth traveled to Zambezi in 2010 to work with Armstrong and a student health team.“This project has been a way for me to remain connected to the Zambezi community,” said Abendroth who plans to continue making the kits year-round for the Gonzaga-in-Zambezi program or to donate to Days for Girls International.
Hannah Van Dinter, a junior nursing major who participated in the Gonzaga-in-Zambezi program last year, witnessed the impact of the project for the women there.
“It became clear to me that many important people in Zambia recognize the immense need for greater empowerment and education for girls,” Van Dinter said. “Encouraging women to develop sustainable sources of hygiene products is a very tangible and important way to tell girls, ‘you are important and you can do it.’ ”
Ultimately, the Gonzaga faculty and students in the program hope the women in Zambezi will make the female hygiene kits to ensure the young women can stay in school and break the cycle of poverty.
“I have full faith in the women’s ability to produce a similar product,” Van Dinter said.
View students’ reflections on this project at their blog at www.gonzagainzambezi.org.
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