Dignity for Daughters

Due to poverty, many teenage girls do not have access to menstrual supplies and often resort to using items such as straw, foam from the inside of their mattresses, ashes from a fire, and other unsanitary items. Many girls are going to middle/high school with pieces of mattress foam in their underwear simply because they can't afford pads. A large number of these girls will miss school during their cycles and sometimes even drop out because of having to miss school so frequently.  

This issue has become even more prominent since the pandemic hit Kenya. Schools have been closed down consistently for over a year now and the girls who were normally in school are now on the streets. These girls have become vulnerable to being taken advantage of by men who promise to buy them pads in exchange for sex.  According to the UN population fund, more than 13,000 girls drop out of school due to pregnancies each year and the numbers have only gotten worse since the pandemic began. Girls would rather give themselves away physically rather than be embarrassed by having an accident in school or have to use a dirty, unsanitary item in replacement of the pad they desperately need. Our desire and dream is to provide these young women with the pads and underwear they are in need of as well as monthly counseling/discipleship. There are thousands of girls who have been deceived into believing that their bodies are a means of exchange so they can get the everyday items they need. We have come to find out that many of them exchange sex for more than just pads. Sometimes they will be so desperate to have a shower, a warm meal, or new clothes and will do anything to receive those things. The equivalent of the pads/clothing/shower/etc is around 25 cents. Somehow, these precious daughters of the Lord who are fearfully and wonderfully made and seen as priceless in their Father's eyes, have marked their value down to 25 cents. The reason why we are passionate about not only providing for their physical needs (with the pads) is because we see an amazing opportunity to help provide for their emotional and spiritual needs. Our monthly counseling/discipleship program will aim to encourage these girls to seek their value and worth in Jesus. 

We have done some research and have found that to supply a years worth of pads, underwear, and monthly counseling it only costs $40 for one girl. That means if you were to give a one time gift of $40, you are taking away the stress, potentially infection/pregnancy/abuse for one vulnerable girl and helping her restore her dignity. We are so excited to see where the Lord takes this program and we pray that He does exceedingly and abundantly more than we could ever imagine with our simple efforts to love on His daughters.