IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center is celebrating a week of service in honor of April National Volunteer Month.
Early Tuesday, April 15, dozens of staff members and community volunteers gathered at the hospital cafeteria to prepare period product kits for local girls.
Over 40,000 period products were packed and bagged into thousands of kits that will be distributed to girls across Southeast Idaho.
“Through the Idaho Period Project, they’ll be given to school administrators and counselors who then identify the girls who are in need of these,” said Brooke Nelson, Vice President of the Idaho Period Project. “So a girl can simply come to the office or to that faculty or staff member and say, ‘Hey, I might not have what I need for this summer,’ and then they can take them home.”
Nelson tells us they surveyed schools in Idaho and found that one in four girls are experiencing period poverty.
“Period poverty is simply the lack of access to period products,” said Nelson.” And that leads them to miss out on full class periods, full days of school, and a lot of important activities that they want to participate in.”
Dozens of ERIMC staff and volunteers sorted through hundreds of boxes of feminine products as part of the organization’s ‘We Show Up For Our Communities’ days of service.
Coleen Niemann, Director of Communication for EIRMC said, “This is an opportunity to show up outside of our building for residents and our neighbors. We are proud to be helping out girls who are in need and schools in our area.”
The goal is to provide girls in the community a chance to fully participate in all their school activities and have a worry-free summer.
Devyn Hinson, Licensed master social worker and Counselor at Bonneville High School, tells local news 8 this project is greatly needed in our community.
“I often have several female students that come to my office several times a day asking for period products. And it’s so wonderful to be able to have these products available in the office that they can just come and grab when they need,” said Hinson.
The supplies will be going out next month, in the middle of May.
EIRMC is serving the community all month long in a variety of ways.
Other projects they have going on this month include:
- Building period product kits for local girls and women in need. Partnership with Idaho Period Project.
- Collecting school supplies for students. Partnership with F.I.S.H. (Friends in Service Here).
- Preparing weekend food kits for children in need. Partnership with United Way of Bonneville County.
- Hosting a non-profit agency fair with fifteen local organizations to educate staff about the vital role these organizations play in our community.
- Promoting donations to the HCA Healthcare Hope Fund, which supports EIRMC colleagues experiencing unforeseen financial crises.
