You Can Make a Difference

Did you know girls in many third world countries miss a week of

school each month because they lack access to feminine hygiene products?
 Handmade cloth feminine pads that are both washable and re-usable, 
can provide girls with dignity to continue their education.
A quality education is one of the few hopes these girls have
to rise above extreme poverty.

Since the earthquake of 2010, teams of medical volunteers have been traveling to Haiti
to conduct feminine hygiene education classes at the eight Christian schools
sponsored by Mission Possible. For the past two years, Sew*Quilt*Share
has been partnering with other churches and community organizations to
sew cloth feminine pads that can be assembled into "feminine hygiene kits"
for female students.

Along with basic hygiene information, 

each kit contains:

2 bars of soap, 3 pair of underwear,

100 ibuprofen tablets, 5 safety pins, and 10 cloth feminine pads.

                   

By sharing the procedures our group uses to produce the cloth feminine pads, 

we hope to inspire others to sew for this wonderful cause.

100% cotton flannel is purchased and cut into one yard pieces.

100% cotton batting is purchased, usually by the roll, and cut into 

more manageable 8.5" strips.

Flannel and batting are placed into a gallon size ziploc bag

to form a "kit" that can easily be distributed. This is a great place
to plug in volunteers who lack sewing skills. Several life groups
in our church have met to cut pads as a service project.

The pad pattern is traced onto the flannel fabric and cut out.

The pattern can be found here.

The lining pattern is traced onto the cotton batting and cut.

A total of 20 flannel pieces and 40 cotton batting pieces (enough to make 10 pads) 

are placed back into the ziploc bag, along with a set of instructions. 

This forms a "sewing kit" which can easily be passed onto those
who will sew the pads together. 

 

                                                                                       

Once the pads are sewn together they are packed into boxes 

and passed along with a prayer of blessing.

The boxes travel a few miles away to our friends at 

St. John's Mennonite Church.

Pads from sewing groups like ours, are gathered throughout the year

and then assembled by volunteers into the feminine hygiene kits.

Here are a few of the kits ready for shipment to Haiti. 

Nice job ladies!

Once the feminine hygiene kits arrive in Haiti teams of medical volunteers 

conduct classes to help educate girls about menstrual cycles and proper body care. 

The kits provide girls with information and supplies that will enable them 

to attend school 45 more days each year. 

In 2014, over 5,000 cloth feminine pads were donated for this project. 

The hope is to expand the outreach allowing more girls

to receive a quality education and learn about the love of Jesus.

Please visit these links to learn how You Can Make a Difference!

Cloth Feminine Pad Tutorial
Unexpected Blessings

May you always Sew in Peace!