Velnah's Distribution Story
From Huru’s monthly donor distribution on June 24.
Velnah has been with us ever since she was a youth facilitator for a PEPFAR-funded project back in 2012, and now she is our Nairobi-based Projects Officer. In the years that she’s been with Huru, she’s truly done it all! From working in the office to traveling to the farthest parts of Kenya, all to ensure that girls have access to the menstrual products that they need.
“Since I started working with Huru, I have developed a great connection and love for the beneficiaries. During my day-to-day work, I have met with girls from different background and places; girls who miss school because their parents cannot afford to buy them sanitary towels to manage their periods forcing them to stay home until the periods are over to avoid any type of embarrassment; girls who have faced gender-based violence and some girls who even exchange sex for pads. Most of these girls come from very poor families where their parents cannot even afford an everyday meal and most of them live in shanty houses.”
- Velnah
And sure, sometimes this work can be tough. It’s emotional and some days physically tiring, but Velnah remains inspired. Like last week, when she was going door-to-door in Mukuru to take Huru Kits to girls during our monthly donor distribution. She described her experience,
“Walking through the passages between houses that are filled with wastewater, rotting trash, and food waste is a challenge… you can’t walk fast because it’s narrow and littered. And it gets worse when it rains and floods. However, I get motivated when I know that this experience, I will have impacted a girl’s life positively. This keeps me wanting to do this work every day.”
Luckily, the rain held off for the team on this day, and they were able to visit the girls at home. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have had to pivot to a door-to-door distribution strategy to eliminate group gatherings. But Velnah feels like this new system is “extraordinary” since now she has the opportunity to meet with the girls’ parents as well. That’s exactly the kind of positive energy we love!
While Velnah was in Mukuru taking girls their Huru Kits, she met a young girl named Cynthia who, after receiving her pads, told Velnah, “you have no idea how much you have improved my self-esteem. During periods I hardly go out because I fear blood will leak and soil my clothes...”
Unfortunately, Cynthia’s family has really been struggling since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic. But her mother was delighted when Cynthia received her Huru Kit, saying “I am really happy that you gave Cynthia Huru pads. It has been a challenge for me to buy her pads every month especially now that things are hard, and I can’t go looking for casual jobs like before… because most of them are closed as a result of this pandemic. Seeing her using pieces of rags made me feel bad as a parent, but I had nothing I could do.”
And now pads are one less thing this family has to worry about.
Velnah told us that Cynthia’s mother was smiling from ear to ear after the team visited the home. She finished this story by telling us, “As much as I felt exhausted at the end of the day, listening to the beneficiaries and their parents’ positive feedback made me feel strong, excited, satisfied… and that I have positively impacted a life.“
Our Nairobi team has quite literally driven and walked miles in the mud, rain, and trash to reach girls who need pads. Some days feel long, but our team is always ready to go by the next morning. Energized, grateful, and excited to make a difference, just as Velnah said. And all thanks to your support.
Read more about how you can be a part of our monthly giving program, The Cycle.
