Annual Tampon Tuesday Donation Drive encourages community to donate menstrual hygiene products for people in need

Annual Tampon Tuesday Donation Drive encourages community to donate menstrual hygiene products for people in need
Donations will be collected for the month of March in Kingston, Frontenac, Lennox & Addington

Kingston, ON (February 27, 2024) United Way KFL&A is excited to announce the return of the annual Tampon Tuesday Donation Drive in the region.

Starting March 1 and running until March 31, 2024, community members are encouraged to donate tampons, pads, liners and other menstrual hygiene products. The donation drive aims to fill a gap in the Kingston Frontenac, Lennox & Addington area; Menstrual hygiene products are among the most requested items at local food banks and shelters, but the least donated. This initiative will once again work locally with national Tampon Tuesday partners Bell Media, organized Labour and Shoppers Drug Mart.

“These collection drives are extremely important for so many agencies and individuals in our community,” said John DiPaolo, President and CEO of United Way KFL&A. “There is always a need for these products and many individuals do not have access to them when they are needed. We are grateful for the wonderful response to this donation drive every year, and I’m sure the community will step up once again to show their support.”

Last year, the KFL&A community showed their support by donating over 118,000 products. After collection, these products are distributed to program users through local agencies and make an impact each day.

“Menstrual hygiene products can be very expensive but are a necessity for many. Can you imagine worrying about buying a product that you need or buying food for your family? We see this with individuals at Interval House, struggling to make ends meet,” explained Leigh Martins, Training, Education and Volunteer Coordinator at Kingston Interval House. “Having these products donated by the United Way, allows us to give them the products they need so that they can use their money to buy other necessary items.”

This year’s drive will once again encourage workplaces and individual collection drives of products. There are drop off locations throughout the region and workplaces, neighbourhoods, families, individuals are encouraged to start their own collections, and then drop off at the collection sites.

Donations will be collected at the following locations:

Until March 5^th:

Cataraqui Town Centre (in partnership with MOVE 98.3): drop off at Centre Court during operating hours

From March 1 through 31 individuals can drop off at:

United Way KFL&A office, 417 Bagot Street – Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
all Shoppers Drug Mart locations in Napanee, Amherstview and Kingston
all Starbucks locations in Kingston

Products can also be donated by

purchasing items from an Amazon wishlist
monetary donations can be made online – please indicate Tampon Tuesday in your comments – monetary contributions will be used to purchase items for distribution to community organizations

For information and resources, including collection site posters and social media posts to help spread the word, visit https://www.unitedwaykfla.ca/tampontuesday or call the United Way KFL&A office at 613-542-2674 or email events@unitedwaykfla.ca

Note: United Way KFL&A encourages inclusiveness for Tampon Tuesday and using the term “menstrual hygiene products”

Only menstrual hygiene products are being collected; no adult incontinence or other products at this time.

About Tampon Tuesday

Started in London Ontario, the grassroots movement began in 2009 after Mandi Fields toured a local foodbank and discovered an empty shelf in the non-food cupboard. Knowing the cost of these items, and their importance to women’s health and dignity, she felt the need could not continue to be overlooked and came up with a plan to provide a solution. Tampon Tuesdays continue to grow as an opportunity to collect products for people experiencing period poverty.

In 2017 United Way Centraide’s Labour Programs and Services joined forces with Tampon Tuesday and Bell Media to begin holding events and drives to help people across Canada.

Facts about menstrual hygiene products

Menstrual hygiene products are among the most requested items at local food banks, shelters and agencies, but the least donated
83% of Canadians who menstruate believe period products are too expensive
One in five (22%) of Canadians who menstruate use products longer than they should because they can’t afford more
17% of Canadians have had to decide between buying a period product and an essential item on their grocery list
68% of Canadian women have felt that their period prevented them from full participation in an activity; this increases to 85% among women and girls under 25

How products will be distributed locally

Products collected will be sorted by volunteers and distributed to various agencies including:

Addiction & Mental Health Services-KFL&A
BGC South East
Dawn House
Dress for Success
Elizabeth Fry Society of Kingston
Girls Inc.
Trellis HIV & Community Care
Home Base Housing
Independent Living Centre Kingston
Community Health Centres Kingston and Napanee
Pathways to Education
Kingston Interval House
Kingston Youth Shelter
Lionhearts Inc.
Lunch by George
Maltby Centre
Martha’s Table
Morningstar Mission
North Frontenac Food Bank
Partners in Mission Food Bank
Resolve Counselling
Salvation Army Community & Family Services
Street Health
St. Vincent de Paul Society
Youth Diversion