A local man is taking a stance against period poverty.
James Symons, engaged in a long row of community projects dropped off bins at two locations on Tuesday, kicking off the United Way 'Period Promise'-campaign aimed to collect packets of tampons and menstrual pads, which will be handed out to local shelters and charities upon request.
"It is an expense that someone who is living in poverty might not be able to afford, and definitely not if you're living in homelessness", Symons said.
The bins are found in the lobby of the TCAG-building on Richmond St. and by the bar at Club Belvedere on John St for three weeks.
The campaign is being held across Niagara, but last year there was no one doing it in Thorold.
Symons said his drive to keep working on the many charity initiatives he is involved in comes from a feeling of responsibility.
"I just feel the need to give back to the community."
Poverty advocates and health organizations have been working to increase the visibility of the issues around period poverty in later years, establishing it as a risk to health- and wellbeing.
In 2018, one-third of Canadian women under age 25 said they struggled to buy menstrual products, according to a report by Plan International Canada.
The Canadian government decided in 2015 to remove the so-called 'tampon tax', but critics have said that did little to affect the affordability of the products.
For a full list of dropoff locations across the region, click here.
