Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Teen uses her birthday to help girls
Retreat fundraiser inspires aspiring young performers Pupil raises funds for reusable sanitary products so peers don’t miss school
SOMETIMES girls from underprivileged backgrounds skip school because it’s that time of the month, but a selfless gesture from a Cape Town teenager will help alleviate the struggle some young women face.
For her birthday gift in January, Avantika Naidoo, who turned 16, asked her family and friends to rather donate towards the purchase of Subz Pants and Pads, a reusable sanitary product. She said she used her birthday to her advantage so that girls would benefit.
The sanitary pads would have a positive impact on the lives of girls, such as herself, Avantika said.
She said she would continue raising funds for the initiative for as long as possible.
“I have seen girls who miss days of school because of the issue of (a lack of) sanitary pads,” she said.
“No teenager should go through that, especially if you consider that a high school career is five years.”
Avantika, who has also been encouraging her friends to make donations, has collected R5 000, which she has used to buy 32 packs for St George’s Girls’ Home and Kerria Primary School in Atlantis.
Last year, her curiosity led her to research the scarcity of sanitary pads.
“I hope everyone sees this as an eye-opener because it’s an ongoing problem, which many people don’t want to look at because it’s an uncomfortable issue,” said the Grade 10 Rustenburg Girls’ High School pupil.
“We wanted something that would empower them to continue their education and excel during the natural process of menstruation, because statistics indicate that girls miss out school when they don’t have access to sanitary pads.
“During my research, I came across Project Dignity and its work within communities providing reusable sanitary pads which