ASHLAND — “A period should end a sentence, not a trip to the library.”
That’s the motto of Know Your Flow, an initiative developed by the National Network of Libraries of Medicine and Aunt Flow. It promotes menstrual health information.
The State Library of Ohio and the National Network of Libraries of Medicine partnered to hand out grants to public libraries this year. The grants aim to address period poverty, which refers to an inability to access or afford menstrual products.
One of those grant recipients is the Ashland Public Library, which received a menstrual product dispenser and supplies. It also received $1,000, which will go toward purchasing additional supplies and developing programming focused on menstrual health.
Did you know?
According to the most recent State of the Period study, around 1-in-4 teens struggle to access period products. One-third of adults also struggle with that access, the study states.
Further, 76% of the teens surveyed as part of the study say they have questions about their periods and want to have more conversations about their menstrual cycles.
Charlene Tolbert, the library’s director, said the library applied for the grant in part because of its Little Free Pantry program.
“It was like, ‘Oh, this kind of goes hand-in-hand with what we’re doing there,’ and it would be a really great opportunity to expand on that pantry,” Tolbert said.
The Little Free Pantry launched in December. The small room, located near the front of the library, contains free hygiene items for people in need.
Events coming
Lindsay Brandon-Smith, who’s in charge of community engagement at the library, said she’s in the process of planning events focused on women’s health. That’s the other part of the grant’s requirements.
Brandon-Smith said she plans to take a “holistic” approach to women’s health with the programming. Her vision is for experts to offer presentations, followed by a discussion and question-and-answer.
She said she wants the programming series to focus on topics like hormonal, mental and physical health and nutrition. She’s working to secure experts in each of those topics for the programming series.
Brandon-Smith and Tolbert also hope the events will draw an intergenerational crowd. Brandon-Smith said she’d love to see mothers and grandmothers attend with their daughters or granddaughters.
“We really want to provide the community with a family-centered program,” Tolbert said. “We want everyone to be comfortable, or at least (to) provide a comfortable environment in which they could explore these topics.”
The programmig hasn’t been scheduled. Around spring time, it will be found on the library’s calendar, Brandon-Smith said.