United Way holds Fill the Bus event for period promise campaign

A BC Transit bus will be parked down at Tillicum Centre Sunday, not to carry passengers, but to take part in a campaign to address period poverty.

The United Way Southern Vancouver Island is down at the shopping centre to collect donations for its 2023 Period Promise Campaign.

The Fill the Bus event will be held at the Tillicum Centre from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in front of the Save-on-Foods.

READ MORE: Campaign launches to address period poverty on South Vancouver Island

The goal of the campaign is to address period poverty on the South Island by collecting period products to distribute to those who struggle to afford to buy products for themselves.

Research by United Way shows that 51 per cent of people who menstruate struggle to access period products at some point in their lives.

United Way Southern Vancouver Island has been holding its campaign since May 1, and the Fill the Bus event is the culmination of a month of collecting products.

Once the event is complete, the products will be distributed through Soap for Hope to local social service agencies.

The event is being held on World Menstrual Hygiene Day, which is a day that aims to end period stigma to help address a lack of ability to manage periods hygienically and without shame.

“Poor menstrual hygiene caused by a lack of education, persisting taboos and stigma, limited access to hygienic menstrual products and poor sanitation infrastructure undermines the educational opportunities, health and overall social status of women and girls* around the world,” the World Menstrual Hygiene Day website says.

“As a result, millions of women and girls are prevented from reaching their full potential.”

This donation drive is in addition to the United Way BC Period Promise Campaign, which services the Interior, Lower Mainland and Central and Northern Vancouver Island.

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