Helping Women in Homelessness
I want to preface this blog by saying that it is not directly related to helping the environment but rather about how we can help the unhoused community. Over the last year I have been working with an organization called the Giving Spirit as a part of their first ever Youth Council. We have held weekly meetings where we learn about the reality of homelessness in Los Angeles and organize events. In honor of Mother's Day on May 8th, The Giving Spirit Youth Council, along with agency partners, has compiled a list of essential items to aid in supporting the health and wellness of women experiencing homelessness. Our goal with the event is to collect donations of essential hygiene and personal care items (notebook+pen, hair ties, and pads) for unhoused women. In addition, our goal is to acknowledge the state we have as fellow humans to ensure these women's dignity, safety, and quality of life.
HERE'S THE REALITY:
- Up to 92% of homeless women have experienced severe sexual or physical assault at some point
- Half of all homeless women have a major depressive disorder—twice the rate of all other women
- Many shelters do not provide menstrual products or provide very few per cycle
- There are currently 20,671 women experiencing homelessness, in the Greater Los Angeles area, a 16% increase over the past year
Ways to Help:
We are asking for donations through an Amazon gift registry that will be sent directly to The Giving Spirit. (Make sure to click the Giving Spirit address at checkout!) Some items like the hair ties and the maxi pads have a limit on how many you can purchase at a time but if possible multiple orders would be greatly appreciated. Our goal is to collect at least 1000 of each item by Mother's Day, which will be distributed directly to homeless women with the help of our partner organizations. If you donate, you can fill out the Google Form below to be entered into a raffle for a $50 gift card!
The link to registry:
https://www.amazon.com/registries/custom/3J5WU8MITZA8N/guest-view
The link to raffle:
Thank you so much for your time and support! You are being a great member of your community by just reading this post and educating yourself about prevalent issues such as homelessness. I hope that this post has inspired you to help our community in some way.
