Personal Hygiene Drive– April 2021

Project Downtown has been dedicated to feeding the hungry for many years. This year, the organization was able to expand their services into a new area: hygiene products. The project was organized and led by board member Mariam Akbani.

"We set up a personal hygiene drive for families and members in low-income communities to ensure that they have access to personal care products to help them stay healthy during COVID-19. We collected and put together different personal care products we thought were essential in everyday life," Akbani said. 

The driving motivation for the drive was difficulties caused by COVID-19.

"COVID-19 hit people of color and low-income communities hardest in regards to health and finances, making it especially difficult to afford crucial products for health and hygiene. We took it upon ourselves to expand our mission and help the community out beyond solely food," Akbani said.

These packages consisted of band-aids, body lotion, bar soap, shampoo, conditioners, hand wipes, face-masks, deodorant, toothpaste, hair combs, Kleenex and female hygiene products. 

"Giving them the hygiene kits and seeing the smile on their faces showed that they were very appreciative of us putting them together and the people were grateful that we were able to help them during the hard times of COVID-19," Akbani said. 

PD board members first decided which items to include in the care kits. Next, they determined the amount of each item to add, in respect to their fixed budget. The final step was to organize and distribute packages. 

"We will continue to create personal hygiene kits three times a year to ensure that families and members of our community continue to have access to personal hygiene products," Akbani said.

In addition to hygiene kits, PD plans to continue seasonal service drives such as school supplies in August and winter coats in December. 

"It was a learning experiences for it was my first time putting together a personal hygiene drive, so I can't wait to continue to improve in the future and create more events like this," Akbani said.