Photo // Emmalee Anglemyer
FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME. Dhruval Chaudhari stands in front of a Malawi Matters sign with a box full of lovingly crafted menstrual kits.
By: Emmalee Anglemyer
Layout Manager, Staff-Writer
IU South Bend’s annual Party with a Purpose was a smash hit on March 6. The event ran from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m., allowing ample opportunity for anybody to participate before, between or after classes.
Several stations were set up in Fireside, eventually overflowing into the main dining area. Students and community members cut fabric, assembled reusable menstrual pads and wrote encouraging notes for women in Malawi at each station. The event was interspersed with informative presentations about Malawi, period poverty and human rights in general.
The goal of the event is to help women and girls in Malawi who are experiencing period poverty, which is defined as a “lack of access to menstrual products, hygiene facilities, waste management and education”, according to a presentation by Ashley Schoen. The event also prioritizes sustainability by creating reusable cloth pads.
Photo // Dhruval ChaudhariHOPE IN A BAG. A box full of menstrual kits, complete with kind letters for women experiencing period poverty, will make its way to Malawi.
Karrie Jean, Honors Program assistant director, said the program partners with Malawi Matters, Busy Hands and other student and community organizations every year to educate students and help provide opportunities for women in Malawi and reduce period poverty. She expressed excitement over the crowd, explaining that traffic to the event was pretty steady and only increased throughout the day.
Given the Honors Program’s long tradition of community service, Jean said the event was inspired by a program by Malawi Matters called “Equipping Women, Empowering Girls,” which aligned with the Honors mission. EWEG sends volunteers to Malawi to teach women about “things they may not be familiar with and help them then teach the young girls,” according to Jean.
“Mainly what we’re wanting is to help a community, particularly women and girls within that community – because it is a male dominated community – to be able to stay in school, go to college if they want,” Jean said. Their goal is to prevent girls from falling behind in school due to a lack of menstrual and hygiene products and to help them seek better opportunities for themselves.
Photo // Emmalee AnglemyerGREAT TURNOUT. A sizable crowd gathers in Fireside and overflows into the main dining area for Party with a Purpose.
“We want to do our best to give them the tools to be able to achieve those goals and dreams,” Jean said.
In tandem with the Malawi Matters partnership, the Honors Program is collecting menstrual products with their Project Red Drive (read more about it on page two). Jean added that while boxes will only be in campus buildings until March 14, donations will be accepted through the end of March in the Honors Lounge.
Jean encouraged students to keep an eye out for the event during Women’s Month next year and join the party.
“Not only are you doing great work and serving others, but there’s presentations that give you the educational aspect, so it’s a learning opportunity,” she said. “It’s also just a lot of fun – that’s why we call it a Party with a Purpose.”
