We missed our two-year anniversary in August! There has been too much going on and we have been preoccupied with orders, new Pachamama partners and life in general!
What a fantastic two-year adventure we’ve had though. Belated Happy Birthday to us!
The stats: Volunteers: 1800 Distribution partners: 12 Countries where we have distributed: Greece, Latvia, Lebanon, Pakistan, Syria, Turkey, Uganda, UK, Ukraine, USA Pacha Pads distributed: 72,156 People taken out of period poverty for up to five years: 8,857
Message from Ella
From three volunteers making Pacha Pads at the kitchen table to over 1,800 of us beavering away to support nearly 9000 refugee women out of period poverty, what we have achieved together is nothing short of incredible. I never imagined that a project borne out of frustration and an attempt to feel useful in a lockdown would turn into something so special. My mum, Heidi, got involved after the second round of BBC coverage about six months in, when I had more than 300 volunteer enquiries in an hour. Heidi works from home and offered to help with admin as “I’m on my laptop anyway”. I’m not sure the offer included turning three rooms of the house into warehouse space or dealing with complicated shipping and customs while I was working and studying abroad in Greece and then Spain – and now back at uni for my final year – but she’s now a director, the face of Pachamama HQ and we’d be completely lost without her.
Pachamama is not only providing practical help for the most vulnerable in society, but we are now recognised as a respected authority on period poverty and refugee period poverty. This means we get regular approaches from the media for comment and information which leads to an even greater profile and, often, to more volunteer enquiries. I also give talks at schools and societies and other events and this is always a great way to communicate on what we do, who we help and to get more interest in volunteering or making financial donations, which keep us going.
We are also working to normalise the conversation around periods so that anyone, anywhere can ask for help when they need it. I saw first-hand in Lesbos the impact this can have on young people as during our weekly Pacha club I witnessed teenage girls go from finding periods hysterical and disgusting to wanting to make their own pads, in just a matter of weeks.
Whilst in Poland I heard about people getting their periods whilst sleeping on the metro floor escaping Ukraine and not feeling like they could ask NGO actors for pads. Half the battle is the stigma.
We have big plans for Pachamama going forward. It will be business as usual while I complete my final year at university and then I’ll be able to give it much more attention and be more proactive. In the meantime, we will support our existing partners and respond to any further emergencies and requests as they come. Building the volunteer base further will be a priority next year and applying for funding so we can grow.
I am so very proud of this group – not only because of the effort that goes into making the Pacha Pads and bags, but also because of the love and empathy that they represent and that you relay to us in your lovely letters and notes. We cannot thank you enough.
For our 12-month plan, please check out our previous newsletter here (although it is already a little out of date as the floods in Pakistan meant we sent an emergency order in September).
Please tell all your friends about us – you never know who might be able to help spread the word, even if they don’t volunteer themselves. Thanks to those of you already running workshops and outreach.
Our partners
These are the fabulous groups who have reached out to us asking for us to supply the communities they work with. Please follow them on social media to see what they’re about:
WingWoman, Lebanon (who make pads to sell to NGOs to give to refugees. We supply fabric and supplies when we can)
Rainbow Project – Turkey
New partners
Since our last newsletter, we have started new partnerships with the NHS’s St Mary’s Hospital in London and JNRC in Rome.
•St Marys Hospital in London runs a UNITY clinic in the boroughs of Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea and Hammersmith and Fulham to support unaccompanied asylum-seeker children with health checks, screening for diseases and mental health support. They are on a mission to improve the overall wellbeing of these minors. Fighting period poverty is a big part of this which is why we are partnering up to support the girls in their care. The feedback from the medical team on receiving the kits has been fantastic. We are told that they are thrilled with the contents, quality, sustainability, and colourful aesthetic of the whole kit.
•The Joel Nafuma Refugee Center is located in Rome, Italy. The JNRC is a non-faith-based refugee support ministry provided by St Paul’s Within the Walls, Episcopal Church in Rome. The day centre assists 9000 to 12000 refugees and asylum seekers every year and offers a holistic approach, with the ultimate goal to support refugees’ and vulnerable migrants' efforts to assimilate by helping them achieve their goals.
They are about to launch a new programme oriented towards women; amongst other things it is a safe space where women have access to clothes and sanitary products. The vast majority of the women who use JNRC’s services are housed and no longer live in refugee camps which means that they have access to safe water to clean their reusable pads.
After suggesting they might be interested in setting up a group to make Pacha Pads (as well as receive from our stocks), we were told that they are about to start a sewing class, and the teacher is enthusiastic about the idea of making the pads during the classes.
We are discussing with our Italian Pachamama ambassador, Alessia, how to boost production in Italy so we can make the distribution as sustainable as possible. All other pads made in the EU can also be directed to Alessia.
Voices of Ukraine
Thanks to all of you who joined us online at the screening of “Voices of Ukraine” – the film I made with Jenny Barruol during our field trip to Poland in April to establish a partnership to supply pads to Ukrainians. With 100 online and 100 in-person tickets sold, we raised £1,100. All proceeds are going to three charities involved in supporting Ukraine: The Pachamama Project/Pads4Refugees fund, which has sent disposable sanitary pads to displaced Ukrainians; Eden Aid which transported our Pacha Pads to the Yorghas Foundation in Poland for free and takes aid weekly to the Ukrainian border and brings people with UK visas back to the UK; and IMIwhich provides bullet-proof vests to journalists on the ground and supports the families of journalists who have lost loved ones in combat. IMI was chosen by our special guest speaker, Iryna, a Ukrainian activist who has been in hiding since Russia invaded Ukraine. Over Zoom, she told the traumatic story of her escape from Putin’s hit men and reminded us of the price that is often paid for freedom. She finished by imploring us not to forget about Ukraine. I’m proud to say that our film is now on the Bristol University Russian department curriculum.
Not forgetting Afghanistan
In the meantime, “Feeding Families”, has just celebrated its first birthday. I set this up with my Afghan friend, Sedighe, who I met in Lesvos. We have been supporting 26 vulnerable families in Herat, Afghanistan, since the Taliban takeover, sending life-saving monthly provisions. Just £15 buys enough goods to keep a family alive for a month. And we were able to raise some extra money for the families to buy heating materials this winter.
The team on the ground report that there used to be other NGOs in the area supporting the most vulnerable but they have left now.
To donate please click here
And to find out more please check out our Instagram @feedingfamiliesafghanistan and my Instagram @ellalamberttoday where I keep everyone updated regularly.
THANK YOU SO MUCH
We couldn’t do what we do without:
Lynn, our Bristol Ambassador for supporting local volunteers with fabric and storing and getting pads to HQ
Joy, our US Ambassador for managing volunteers in the US
Alessia, our Italian Ambassador for growing the network in Italy
Astrid who is launching Pachamama in The Netherlands
Helen and Ruth who are incredibly active behind the scenes, not just making insane numbers of pads, but also supporting us at HQ, producing the written and video instructions, spreading the word and collecting and sorting for FreeShop and keeping Heidi sane-ish
Michael and Lesley who are providing extra local storage, enabling Christmas to go ahead at HQ!
Maria and Jim for helping at HQ
Everyone who has set up sewing groups
Everyone who has had events and stalls at fayres to promote Pachamama including Kay, Thelma, Nicky, Barbie, Linda
Grandad Nick for attaching thousands of Kam Snaps!
Grandma Julia for being the third ever Pachamama and for continuing to support us making pads
Big Yellow Storage – for free storage in Chelmsford, Essex – and for returning a little sanity and space to HQ.
Smoothie London for their continued support in donating 10% of their profits to us and for creating a special Pachamama huggie earring. Please check out their collection – beautiful earrings at amazing prices.
Shema for regular donations from her Belly dancing classes
BB Pads – commercial reusable sanitary pads donating 10% of their profits to us
SugaCouture who are donating 10% of their profits to us.
Rosi Skinfood - wonderful organic skincare – donating 10% from online purchases when you use the code “PACHA” at the checkout
Chris at The Vines Fruiters in Great Baddow – for bringing us an endless supply of boxes for shipping
The generous individuals who have donated via our GoFundMe page
Liz Walsh for our brilliant website
Beth Rowland for our gorgeous logo
All our amazing volunteers and their families who get involved
“Never Underestimate the power of a small group of committed people to change the world”
Margaret Mead, US Anthropologist 1901-1978
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