FOUNDING STORY
Our project stemmed from the real experience of period cramps, expanding into thoughts of better female hygiene products and menstrual education. We, the founders, decided the best way to accomplish this goal was to brew our own, and thus G2G was born in January 2022.
Our founders Coco and Olivia want to share four stories about the founding of Give to the Girls below:
Olivia - Story #1
Since the first time I got my period, period cramps have never stopped. In my personal experience, menstruation started in a mess.
I was on a trip abroad without my mom, and no one had taught me how to use pads or which brand is better. I had this weird walking style because of menstrual pads and had to rest many times in a day as I had cramps, which interrupted the trip.
Menstruation influenced my life a lot in the first few months, and it has been a natural thing for me to buy the fanciest pads and backup boxes of pads. I thought menstruation was hard enough when the only thing I need to worry about is cramps.
Coco - Story #2
Growing up, my relationship with my feminine body was something I constantly thought about.
if I recall correctly, the constant debate within myself started in elementary school.
I first heard about the biological differences between males and females through sex jokes made by the 4th graders. The idea of the mystery of my body fascinated me and I was hungry to get to know more. However, it appeared to the 7-year-old me that this was a taboo that no one should talk about. So, I kept that part of me a secret and never told anyone about my curiosity.
But, this didn't stop me from the journey to " knowing". As I grew older, I constructed my entire worldview on sex from the bits and pieces of information told by my peers and pop culture's various works. At some point, I was so sure that Justin Bieber's "What do you mean" music video was what sex looked like. As you could probably tell, that wasn't the best idea.
Just like so many of my peers, my view of sex was shaped by so many lies and exaggerated portrayals of women that were not only wrong but sometimes extremely damaging.
Olivia - Story #3
About three years ago, I saw people with inadequate menstrual products, and I learned a new phrase: period poverty. That was when I started researching the supplying situation of female hygiene products in developing countries and relatively remote areas. Statistics, stories, pictures…everything was leading to a fact that even though they want to care for themselves, not everyone could buy those costly pads. And that made me, a girl who has been living in a big city since born, think of how to care for and resonate with them.
In 2019, Coco and I and a small group of friends planned a launching project in Africa by distributing safe, sustainable menstrual products. That was our only goal by then, but fortunately and gratefully, now we are not only focusing on the launch itself but also creating informative materials to educate young women and everyone about menstruation education. We wish to impact, both materially and mentally, and hope to make this project have a large influence on thoughts, not size.
Coco - Story #4
At age 13, I had my first experience with menstruation. That day, the excitement and the pain that I felt simultaneously left me overwhelmed. My relationship with menstruation was always filled with love I hate. Yes, I understood that menstruation is what gave me the power to one day nurture? a child in my wombs, but I was also tortured by the pain it has brought me. Cramps were bad enough, but what really frustrated me was the stigma surrounding them. From the way we lower our voice when talking about this, to the fact that we have to hide our tampons in our sleeves every time we try to change it, it shocked me how girls' natural biological process disgusted the " boys".
Thus, I began creating. Along with my best friend Olivia, I founded this organization in 9th grade with the wish to destigmatize menstruation, sex education, and ensure a healthy feminine body for girls all around the world.
We wish to make the world place where girls are not ashamed of the beauty of their bodily functions, are educated about their biological structures, and are provided with enough care throughout the hard times of menstruation.