Tampon Tuesday puts a big dent in period poverty in the Sault

Local unions and members of the community have once again gathered a large donation of feminine hygiene products for people in need for the annual Tampon Tuesday.

Last year, a total of 817 boxes of product were collected for the event, which is organized locally by the Sault Ste. Marie and District Labour Council, said president Michele McCleave-Kennedy.

“It will be counted tomorrow. I am going to say it looks like a little bit more than last year,” said McCleave-Kennedy. “It’s our fifth year and it has gotten bigger every year.”

This year’s donations were collected Tuesday at Harvest Algoma on Second Line and will be distributed to local shelters and organizations who assist women in need.

McCleave-Kennedy said there are many women in the community who can’t afford to spend $10 or $20 a month on feminine hygiene products. The event aims to reduce ‘period poverty’ which forces some women to choose between buying feminine hygiene products or feeding their family .

“A couple of years ago there was a woman telling the story at Tampon Tuesday about how she couldn’t go to work, she had to stay home with towels because she couldn’t afford to buy products and that is shameful in this community that would ever occur,” she said.

Feminine hygiene products are not always thought of when people donate to local shelters or other organizations who service people in need.

 “There has been more need for everything during the pandemic and this is no different. The local food banks tell us this is the least given product and it is always a need,” said McCleave-Kennedy. “This is a lot of product and hopefully it will keep people going for some time.”

For the third year in a row, local stores Metro, Recall, Food Basics and Shoppers Drug Mart also contributed to the event.

On Friday, volunteers brought the products to Harvest Algoma and built a tower using the packages, but they were unable to have people who will receive the product in attendance because of the pandemic. McCleave-Kennedy said she hopes next year the event can return to being held in person.

“We used to have snacks and conversation and hopefully we can do that again next year,” she said. “We have met some of the people who received the product in the past come out and help us, that’s how important it is.”

“It’s nice to see that come full circle,” she added.

Aside from donations of physical product, McCleave-Kennedy said at least $4,000 has been donated toward purchasing more product for this year’s event.

“It’s a simple thing for us to do and another way local unions give back to the community,” she said.

The Sault Ste. Marie and District Labour Council also holds an annual food drive, donates backpacks for kids in August and every year holds a Labour Day celebration at the Roberta Bondar Pavilion.