We all know the saying: It takes a village…

Well, the Pan-African Sisterhood Health Initiative (P.A.S.H.I) may be where the motto originated.

P.A.S.H.I is made up of 25 to 35 Black women retirees that meet up every week at Ujimi Friends Peace Center in North Philly to sew reusable, washable menstrual pads for girls and women in Africa and Caribbean, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“We don’t call it period poverty, we call it menstrual hygiene management,” Maisha Sullivan-Ongoza, one of the founders, said about the project. “We use 100% cotton fabric. We researched and found a commercial product called Zorb, a 100% compressed cotton that absorbs liquid that is seven to eight times its weight. Then we used a laminated cotton material as the water-resistant layer.”

The pads are designed to last for three years.

“I just love the impact it’s having. They’re not using something that’s unhealthy. They are not open to [sexual] predators taking advantage of them [in exchange for buying pads]. They have something so they can manage their periods with dignity.”

Another lesson P.A.S.H.I teaches is self-sufficiency. A principle the group put into practice when visiting Zimbabwe in December 2023 to teach women how to sew the period pads by hand, since sewing machines can be scarce.

Sullivan-Ongoza doesn’t send commercially-produced pads because of the “forever chemicals” used may impact a woman’s reproductive system and relies on her organic method.

It’s that commitment for global health weaved with passion for service that has launched P.A.S.H.I from a small project within Sankofa Artisans Guild, a group of quilt makers, jewelry designers and other artisans, in 2019 to an independent initiative that is a lifeline for women on the continent.

To make a donation to P.A.S.H.I visit Ujima Friends Peace Center and specify the gift is for them.