Each Tuesday, is the Park City Rotary Club’s luncheon at the Yarrow-DoubleTree. Members gather to build friendships, network and plan service projects. Said the organization’s president, Timothy Higdon: “We are folks that want to serve our community and make a difference. “
Best known for hosting one of Park City’s most popular annual events — Miners Day and the Running of the Balls on Main Street — the club also provides grants to local nonprofits and works to build alliances with fellow Rotary groups.
“We plan both local and international projects, which I believe is part of the club’s allure,” Higdon said.
It is from these grass-roots partnerships that the Park City Rotary Club is spearheading what is perhaps its most ambitious project since its founding in 1980.
The program’s name is Bwiza — which means beautiful in Kinyarwanda, Rwanda’s national language. Foundation Director John Hanrahan said the idea for the international cooperative began over a year ago at a casual dinner party in Park City. Hanrahan was serendipitously introduced to Agnes Bihagrahu, the former minister of health for Rwanda and current dean of the University of Global Health Equity.
Throughout the evening, Bihagrahu voiced her concern about an issue affecting young girls in rural Rwanda communities. When a girl reaches puberty, she often finds it impossible to afford disposable pads or tampons, due to their high cost — around 90 cents a pad. And many schools and public areas only offer communal latrines, which can make the entire menstrual process awkward and embarrassing.
Because of this, absenteeism among Rwanda teenage girls is at a precarious level, which leads to a high percentage of school dropouts, which then results in lower-paying jobs, limited opportunities and ultimately affects the entire community.
Hanrahan and Bihagrahu felt there must be a straightforward solution to this problem that should include educating the rural populations about puberty and menstruation and finding a way to provide low-cost hygiene products.
Thus, over an evening of wine, salad and conversation, BWIZA was born.
“This is such an amazing way to empower girls and women and to hopefully lead to economic independence,” Higdon said. He said they have have partnerships with the Rotary International Foundation, Rotary International District 9150 Rwanda, International Rotary International District 5420 Utah, Rotary Club of Kigali, Rotary Club of Salt Lake City and the University of Global Health Equity.
The $58,000 program will benefit 1,500 students from three high schools in the Burera School District in Rwanda.
“We are providing sewing machines and fabrics to the schools, along with an education program that will train high school girls and boys to make reusable pads,” Higdon said. “The entire program is a self-sustaining project, so students and cooperative groups can make the pads, sell them for a low cost, and use the profits to replenish supplies. We’re also making sure we have maintenance contracts on the sewing machines, so they can be repaired as needed.”
Higdon attributed much of the project’s success and completion speed to the University of Global Health Equity.
“They are based in Rwanda, and they know the community and local entities,” he said. “If it was just our club trying to do this, without them as a partner on the ground, the timeline and challenges would be much greater.”
Hanrahan also credited the International Rotary Foundation, as they managed and matched the funds.
“The foundation members are detailed and thorough stewards of the donations and the financing,” Hanrahan said. “Every dollar has to be accounted for, which is great because it makes for a successful project. For example, each principal from the Rwanda schools must provide a letter stating that a separate room is available for the girls. The room must include a latrine, towels and a bed.”
Phase one of BWIZA will launch in September, at the beginning of the school year. There will be a local oversight committee consisting of five teachers, two students and a representative from the University of Global Health Equity. Training and education also will be provided by local university students working on their master’s degrees in health.
After the completion of phase one, the success of the program will be measured using a metric based on the number of school absences, the number of girls who complete the full training and the number of students receiving the hygiene pads.
Higdon, Hanrahan and a group of Park City Rotarians are planning to visit the Rwanda school district in the near future and look forward to meeting the local team and encountering the program first hand.
For more information, visit parkcityrotary.org.