BY: KRYSTAL GROVER
What was once forecasted as a rainy and gloomy day took a turn for the better and resulted in the raising of many menstrual products and a significant community impact. The Bloom Red Project, in collaboration with Anthony Perruzza’s office, held a menstrual product donation drive for the Downsview community. Krystal Grover, the co-founder of The Bloom Red Project, and Ayesha Khan, the Councillor’s Outreach Staff and Aide, organized this event, coordinating volunteers, donation drop-offs, logistics and everything in between.
Upon arriving at the location, the team was first greeted with a heavy downpour and a thunderstorm warning – but the weather stood no chance against their determination and enthusiasm. From 4:00 – 8:00 pm on July 8th, regardless of rain or shine, a booth was set up at Driftwood Park, accepting physical and monetary donations.
Almost as if the community effort and warmth altered the weather, the rain seemed to halt completely, and the drive proved to be a success. Over 80 Bloom Bundles were made, containing more than 1,500 pads and 100 tampons. By the end of the event, the community and the volunteers alike had collected 1,782 products, all to be donated to the Society for the Living Food Bank and to be distributed Saturday, July 10th. The incredible support and effort from the community and the team of volunteers have played a large role in diminishing period poverty and making a dent in our progress as a society.
Volunteers putting together Bloom Bundles of products.
Period poverty refers to the inaccessibility of period products, waste management, basic sanitation such as toilets, proper disposals and soap, as well as lack of education regarding menstruation. Period poverty exists across the globe and impacts millions of people every waking minute. Even right here in Canada, 1 in 4 women have to choose between buying period products or buying food - a choice that absolutely no one should have to make. Period poverty is often accompanied by its silent, but just as lethal partner, period stigma. Together, these two components create a hostile and dangerous environment for menstruators. This societal issue has dire mental, physical and long-term impacts on all those affected.
Seeing this crisis present right here in the GTA, I, Krystal Grover, alongside other like-minded students, co-founded The Bloom Red Project. The Bloom Red Project is a community-based organization working towards diminishing period poverty and stigma across the GTA. By donating period products to shelters and those in need, all while hosting multiple awareness campaigns, we tackle both the stigma and poverty aspect of this atrocious issue. To learn more, please visit our Instagram, @thebloomredproject, and join our fight against period poverty.