There are girls in Brazil who miss school when they have their period, simply because there is no pad at home. This is called period poverty, and it affects millions of families who cannot afford basic hygiene items every month.
Your Club can be part of the answer. A hygiene and menstrual dignity campaign collects soap, toothbrushes and toothpaste, pads and other products, organizes everything into kits and delivers them to those in need: vulnerable families, shelters and schools in the community.
This guide shows how to plan the campaign with care and respect, how to involve female and male Units, how to seek out partners like ADRA and Social Services, and how to record the group's service hours.
What period poverty is, plainly
Menstruating is normal and happens to every girl at some point in adolescence. The difficulty appears when there is no money for the products it requires. Pads, soap, toilet paper, clean water and a bathroom with privacy. When those are missing, you get what is called period poverty.
The consequences are concrete. According to the report released by UNICEF and UNFPA in 2021, roughly 1 in 4 students have already missed school because they could not afford a pad. The same study found that more than 4 million girls have no access to minimum menstrual care items within their own schools, and 713,000 live without a bathroom or shower at home.
Missing a day of class seems small, but it repeats every month. A girl who loses a few days each cycle piles up weeks of lost content over the year. Add to that the shame, the fear of staining her clothes in front of classmates and the silence that surrounds the topic. It is a matter of health, education and dignity all at once.
Your Club will not solve this on its own. But every kit delivered means one less girl choosing between studying and taking care of herself, and one more family receiving the basics with respect.
Why the Club gets involved in this
Serving those in need is at the heart of the Christian faith. Jesus was direct when he described the final judgment: "I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me," and he concluded: "Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me" (Matthew 25:36,40, NIV). Caring for those in need is serving Christ in person.
The book of Proverbs gives the same order to those who have a voice and influence: "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy" (Proverbs 31:8,9, NIV). Speaking about period poverty, a subject many people avoid, is already part of the service.
Isaiah describes the kind of generosity that pleases God: "to share your food with the hungry and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter," and promises that "if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness" (Isaiah 58:7,10, NIV). The campaign is a practical way to live out these verses.
This is the Adventist belief about service, and you do not have to be Adventist to take part. The cause is human before it is religious, and the Club opens its doors to everyone who wants to help.
How to organize the collection and assemble the kits
Start by setting the target. How many kits does the Club want to assemble, and for whom? Fifty families in a neighborhood, a girls' shelter, a nearby public school. Having a clear number helps with outreach and lets you know when the goal has been met.
Next, decide the contents of each kit. A simple, dignified model usually includes:
| Item | Suggested quantity per kit |
|---|---|
| Pads (packs) | 2 to 3 |
| Bar soap | 2 |
| Toothbrush | 1 per person |
| Toothpaste | 1 |
| Toilet paper (rolls) | 4 |
| Shampoo or liquid soap | 1 |
To collect, set up drop-off points at the church and at spots arranged with the parents. Ask for donations of sealed products, within their expiration date, and never opened or used. A cash fundraiser works too: the Club buys wholesale and gets more for every dollar invested.
Set aside a Saturday afternoon or a whole meeting for assembly. The Units form a production line, each one handling a single item, and the kits come out packed in simple, clean bags. Avoid notes that expose who will receive them. Delivery is discreet, with no photo of anyone's face without permission.
Read alsoBreaking the Silence and the Pathfinder clubFemale Units lead, the boys come in with respect
It makes sense for the female Units to take the lead. The girls know the subject from the inside and can talk about it naturally, which helps lift the weight of the taboo. Let them plan, present the cause to the Club and run the kit assembly.
This does not push the boys aside. They carry boxes, organize the collection, help with the wholesale buying, and handle outreach and delivery logistics. The conversation with them is short and clear: menstruation is normal, it is part of life for half the people in the world, and no one should struggle because of it. A boy who learns this early becomes a man who shows respect.
Avoid jokes and nicknames. The Counselor sets the tone right from the start, treating the subject with the same seriousness as a coat drive. If the topic is new to the group, a simple explanation with no clinical detail is enough. The idea is to spark empathy, taking care not to embarrass anyone.
Good leadership grows from causes like this. If your Club wants to shape Pathfinders who think of others, this campaign teaches more than many theory sessions.
Partnerships that multiply the reach
On its own, the Club assembles dozens of kits. With partners, it reaches hundreds and delivers to those who truly need them. The first natural partner is ADRA, the Adventist humanitarian agency, which already works with vulnerable families and knows where help makes a difference. Reach out to the ADRA coordination in your region before setting up the campaign.
The town's Social Services is the second route. The CRAS, the Social Assistance Reference Center, registers families at risk and can point out who should receive the kits, with confidentiality and good judgment. This keeps the donation from ending up in the wrong hands and ensures it reaches those who are actually in line for it.
Public schools and shelters complete the network. Many school principals know, one by one, the students who miss class for lack of a pad. A conversation with the administration opens the door to regular deliveries, not just once a year. Girls' shelters and care homes also welcome this kind of support.
Formalize each partnership with a responsible contact and agreed dates. A service well coordinated with the local network yields more and lasts longer than an isolated action. It is also worth learning how ADRA and the Club work together on other fronts.
Recording the group's service hours
Community service counts toward several Classes and Honors, and menstrual dignity fits that requirement perfectly. Record everything from day one: who took part, how many hours each person put in and what was done at each stage.
A simple spreadsheet does the job. Columns for name, date, activity (collection, assembly, delivery) and hours. The Club Secretary consolidates it at the end and the Director signs off. Keep photos of the kits and of the team at work, always without exposing the face of anyone receiving the donation.
Ask each Pathfinder for a short paragraph about how they felt. This personal record counts toward the Class evaluation and, more than that, cements the learning. Service we do not reflect on becomes just a task; service thought through becomes character.
To fit the campaign into the calendar and the requirements, the guide on community service in the Club helps plan the hours in advance.
Care, confidentiality and what not to do
Dignity is the key word. Someone receiving a kit is going through a hard time and deserves respect, without a shadow of embarrassment. Treat each delivery with the discretion you would want for your own family. No exposing names, addresses or faces in groups and on social media.
Do not turn the campaign into a spotlight. The photo worth publishing is the one of the team assembling the kits, with everyone's permission, and never one of someone receiving the donation. Written consent from parents is mandatory for any image of a minor.
This campaign is awareness and solidarity, not health care. If a girl reports severe pain, unusual bleeding or any worrying symptom, advise her to seek out a health clinic or a doctor. In an emergency, call your local emergency number (in Brazil, SAMU 192). The Club welcomes and refers, but it does not diagnose.
Keep the subject light and respectful throughout the whole project. A Club that talks about menstruation without shame and without mockery has already knocked down half the taboo that causes period poverty in the first place.