OH! Magazine - Australian Version January 2016 | Page 22

(Advertorial)

SHARE THE DIGNITY

‘Sanitary items should be a
right NOT a privilege.’
– Founder, Rochelle Courtney
We were thrilled getting them out to some
local great Brisbane charities that we
knew women would benefit from. We had
just 100 pads and tampons left when our
neighbours in Vanuatu went into crisis, so
we bundled them off and got them off to
the relief team that were heading over
there.

Our aim is to provide homeless and at-risk almost embarrassing that it had not
women throughout Australia with sanitary occurred to me before’.
products to allow them a sense of dignity
The most extraordinary call to action has
at a time when they need it most.
occurred and momentum is building.
Perhaps because it is so easy just to pop
No woman should suffer the indignity of
another packet of pads in our shopping
choosing between eating and buying
basket? But we need more help. We
sanitary items.
want to share the dignity and be at the
forefront of all women’s minds when they
We have had such an amazing response
shop at this time of the month. Share the
from Australian women we like to call
‘sheros’ and with their help we have been Dignity was started in Brisbane when it
able to provide domestic violence refuges was read by Rochelle an article on Mia
Freedman’s page early in the year of
and homeless shelters with substantial
2015.
donations of pads and tampons. Usually
these are the last items to be donated yet
Rochelle decided to do something about
the first to be taken.
it. The first collection on 1 March 2015
We are continuously hearing from women had the local community, friends, family
and local businesses come together
across the country who say, ‘I had never
collecting over 500 pads and tampons.
thought of this being an issue. It’s

Not long after that we were contacted by
a few domestic violence shelters if we had
anymore sanitary items but we had to say
‘no’. We never want to have to say ‘no’
again.
Our second collection date was on 1
August 2015 and we were overwhelmed
by the women of Australia and their
passion to help share the dignity. In this
collection we received over 150,000
packs of pads and tampons, which is over
1.5 million sanitary items. Unfortunately,
it’s a monthly problem and there are
around 92,000 women needing our
assistance every month. Therefore, our
aim for 2016 is to have 300,000 pads
and tampons donated. For collection
dates and locations (we hope for 500
collection points in Australia), or to find
out how to become a ‘shero’ yourself, visit
www.sharethedignity.com.au