{"id":44896,"date":"2023-07-13T10:53:34","date_gmt":"2023-07-13T14:53:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thelandmark.com\/?p=44896"},"modified":"2023-07-13T10:53:34","modified_gmt":"2023-07-13T14:53:34","slug":"gold-award-project-brings-awareness-to-period-poverty","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/2023\/07\/13\/gold-award-project-brings-awareness-to-period-poverty\/","title":{"rendered":"Gold Award project brings awareness to period poverty"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Danielle Ray<\/em>
\nLandmark correspondent<\/em><\/p>\n

HOLDEN \u2014 When it came to selecting a project for her Girl Scouts Gold Award, rising Wachusett Regional High School senior Verena Welch knew exactly what she wanted to focus on: period poverty.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s an issue the 17-year-old first learned about in middle school.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeriod poverty is the inadequate access to period products, hygiene facilities, waste management, and education that persists around the world, along with the ignorance about menstruation and women\u2019s bodily autonomy that worsens this issue,\u201d Welch shared. \u201cAlthough this problem may not be as prevalent in our local area compared to other places in the U.S. and the world, it stuck with me, and I became determined to make a change and combat period poverty in my local community.\u201d<\/p>\n

Welch has been working on her Gold Award over the last several months. She has collected donations of period products such as tampons and pads for local pantries, secured complimentary period products in bathrooms and offices at the high school, and is fighting period poverty through educational resources and passage of the \u201cI AM\u201d bill in Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

She hopes to get more people involved with donations and advocacy, and said it is \u201cexciting to be able to share this work with the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the best ways to make change is through collective advocacy,\u201d Welch said. \u201cI encourage members of the community to learn more about period poverty and ways they may be able to help through spreading information, donating or bringing new insight and ideas to the table.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Girl Scout Gold Award is the highest award a Girl Scout Senior or Ambassador can earn by completing a full take-action project addressing an issue in the community. Welch, who has lived in Holden since she was 2, feels strongly that focusing on period poverty and the \u201cstigma\u201d that surrounds menstruation is essential.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeriod stigma leads to inadequate information available about menstruation, period products and policies that allow or restrict access to period supplies,\u201d she said. \u201cMany people are misinformed that periods are shameful and only a women\u2019s issue, when in reality menstruation is normal and experienced by many people including women, transgender men, and nonbinary people. I think many people are skeptical of talking about a personal issue like periods, and also too overwhelmed by the scope of the problem to make change. I believe my project is needed because normalizing these conversations and making an effort is the only way to make change. Fighting period poverty helps to both provide period supplies to those in need, and to educate the greater community about an important issue in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

She worked to create a donation system through her church, Immanuel Lutheran in Holden, to provide period products to local pantries and food fridges in the Worcester area, which became the foundation of her Gold Award project. She built upon that work by introducing period products at the high school. Welch created a pilot program to make period products available in multiple bathrooms and offices at the high school, where they were not allowed before.<\/p>\n

The products come from donations from Immanuel Lutheran and through donations and funding from the high school\u2019s National Honors Society chapter.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe project has grown immensely despite facing some challenges,\u201d Welch said. \u201cI was unsure about how much I could accomplish at my age and with the difficulties of period stigma and ignorance, but I am amazed by how much has been accomplished.\u201d<\/p>\n

She is currently working with the high school administration to find outside organizations that may be able to fund period products after facing \u201ca few initial setbacks from the district over concerns about the logistics of the project.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter great conversations and continued support from Superintendent Dr. (James)] Reilly, I was able to launch the program, which has been running with great success in the school,\u201d Welch said. \u201cI am so grateful for the incredible support from members of my church congregation who have donated so many products and made such an impact on my project.\u201d<\/p>\n

She is also involved in advocating for the \u201cI AM\u201d bill, which is in the Joint Committee on Public Health and \u201cneeds to be reported out favorably to continue moving forward in the process.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe I AM bill received immense media attention and support in the last legislative session, but unfortunately never made it to a final vote or passing and had to be recalled this session,\u201d Welch said. \u201cThe passing of the bill would ensure period products in schools, shelters and prisons in the state. What we need is more attention, pressure and support for the passing of the bill, as legislative change will be the most impactful for those facing the detrimental effects of period poverty.\u201d<\/p>\n

While her Gold Star project will likely be coming to a close over the summer due to her achievements so far with donations, education and advocacy, the determined young woman said she \u201cwill continue working toward fighting period poverty and sharing this issue more with the community.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe passing of the I AM bill would be an incredible accomplishment for the state and would help achieve many of my project goals, but until that point, I\u2019ve taken steps to connect with others willing to help sustain my project after I graduate, through continuing donations to the pantries and high school and ensuring the issue is not forgotten,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

She appreciates the support she has received for her project, and that \u201call of the community members that are a part of it have taught me so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel I have a deeper understanding of this issue and how to create change in areas I care about, which is a skill I intend to carry with me throughout my life. I\u2019m interested in studying medicine and policy in college, and will continue to fight period poverty wherever I go.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information on period poverty and Welch\u2019s Gold Star project, follow @periodproductsforallgoldaward on Instagram (instagram.com\/periodproductsforallgoldaward) and Linktree.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Danielle Ray Landmark correspondent HOLDEN \u2014 When it came to selecting a project for her Girl Scouts Gold Award, rising Wachusett Regional High School senior Verena Welch knew exactly what she wanted to focus on: period poverty. It\u2019s an issue the 17-year-old first learned about in middle school. \u201cPeriod poverty is the inadequate access […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44899,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_gspb_post_css":"","_sitemap_exclude":false,"_sitemap_priority":"","_sitemap_frequency":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-44896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"blocksy_meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=44896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/44899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=44896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=44896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devcherryroad.com\/news2\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=44896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}