Emily Havens|ehavens@thespectrum.com
For many everyday women, they dress themselves in the morning and don’t think twice about what it might feel like to not have a bra to wear underneath their shirt. Many don’t think about what they would do if they didn’t have an extra tampon in their car, or a box of menstrual pads in their desks at work.
However, many homeless, refugee and women who are victims of domestic violence go without bras or feminine hygiene products everyday. But one group is hoping to change that.
Support the Girls is a nonprofit organization that believes women shouldn’t have to choose between feeding themselves or maintaining their personal health. The nonprofit organizes drives each year to collect bras and hygiene products for girls and women in need.
This year, Support the Girls has expanded to Utah for the first time, and Courtney Killpack, director of the Utah chapter, said research clearly showed her that these are products at-risk women have needed for awhile.
Killpack said women’s shelters and crisis centers helped more than 6,000 Utah women this year, and that’s a conservative estimate.
The pricey cost of bras and feminine hygiene products has been a recent hot topic of conversation among women, and homeless or low-income women are at a real disadvantage because of this, Killpack said.
"For everyday women, bras and tampons are like an evil necessity," she said. "For women who are homeless, refugees or victims of violence, those are not easily available to them. A lot of these women can’t get a job. If you’re on your period and you don’t have tampons, it’s hard to get and maintain a job."
Additionally, women who can’t afford bras are at a disadvantage as well. Killpack said it’s a social norm to wear bras, which may make it hard to look professional during a job interview.
"For teenage refugees in the country, they’ll go to high school and find out it’s just the social norm to wear bras," Killpack added. "If they don’t have a bra, they don’t feel like they integrate into society."
There are six donation locations across the state in Cedar City, Bountiful, Logan, Ogden, Orem and Salt Lake City. Each donation location are local businesses owned by women, and Cedar City’s Recycled Design, located at 63 W. Center St., is Southern Utah’s designated location.
The Canyon Creek Women’s Crisis Center will receive all donations received by Recycled Design.
"There’s a huge need," CCWCC Director Brant Wadsworth said. "Women definitely need these kinds of products. Without them, it puts up a barrier for them blocking any sort of progress to their situation."
Women who are fleeing an abusive relationship or dangerous situation often aren’t in a position to take personal items with them, Wadsworth said. Additionally, Killpack said some women who flee domestic violence situations aren’t in a position where they can earn money to acquire these necessary products.
According to health.utah.gov, one in eight Utah women will be raped in their lifetime. Wadsworth said one in three will experience some form of sexual violence. Also, Utah’s reported rape rate has consistently been "significantly higher"than the U.S. rate, according to the site.
Utah also reportedly ranks lower than the national average for HPV vaccine completion. According to a BioMed study, just over 44 percent of adolescent girls start the vaccine, but only 20 percent complete the three-dose series. Even less within the homeless and at-risk sect complete the vaccine, and Killpack said women who are in domestic violence and homeless situations are more vulnerable to health issues, including toxic shock syndrome.
"If you don’t have money, and you only have two tampons, you’re going to leave them in as long as you can,"Killpack said. "Women who are in need don’t have the luxury to change tampons often like everyday women do. They are definitely at a higher health risk because of sanitary issues."
Lots of women have gently-used or new bras in drawers they don’t use or don’t fit them anymore that could be donated, Killpack said.
"It is to everybody’s advantage to get involved," Wadsworth said.
Follow reporter Emily Havens on Twitter, @ EmilyJHavens , or find her on Facebook at facebook.com/emilyjhavens . Call her at 435-674-6214.
How to help
What: Support the Girls fundraiser for bras and feminine hygiene products
When: Donations are accepted through Dec. 31.
Where: Recycled Design, located at 63 W. Center Street in Cedar City
