“Communities and countries and ultimately the world are only as strong as the health of their women.” – Michelle Obama
My name is Sriram Vennamaneni and I have been a volunteer for VT Seva Dallas for about 10 years.
Throughout my time at VT Seva, I have been involved in numerous activities, but one that resonates with me, in particular, is women's health.
Across the globe, women are stigmatized and shunned due to issues over their health and well-being. Topics that should be ordinary, such as questions about hygiene, menstrual events, and related subjects are often tabooed and ignored by many. This causes women to remain silent when faced with health-related problems, leading to the progression and growth of diseases, such as cancer, and poor sanitary health. This issue is extremely prevalent in many parts of the world, including developing countries like India, where poor sanitation, awareness, and lack of resources are rampant.
To combat this problem, VT Seva has conducted multiple cancer screening camps for breast and cervical cancer, hosted educational sessions about women's health, and raised funds for the creation of mammograms and VIA tests, impacting around 2 million women across India.
The scale on which VT Seva reached out to women, even from rural areas, inspired me to take up a project through VT Seva Mahila Arogya Vikas (MAV) and do my part in improving women's health. Research studies indicate that enabling women with proper prevention measures can prevent 30% of cancer cases. Avoiding risk factors, such as a lack of menstrual hygiene and usage of cancer-causing sanitary pads can go a long way in saving lives.
I would like to procure low-cost and bio-friendly manufacturing equipment to make high-quality sanitary pads. The pads manufactured by MAV will be distributed to women from slum areas and underprivileged students who cannot afford to buy them. MAV will employ local women to supervise the machine and distribute the products, offering a stable job and income to them.
On the occasion of World Cancer Day - Feb 4th, 2023, I am launching this project to raise awareness and funds for this cause. As a volunteer from the age of 5, I have supported multiple cancer screening camps, impacting thousands of women. This cause motivated me to be consistent year after year regarding caring for women's health.
I am taking the first step for this project by pledging the money I saved from gifts over the years from my friends and family.
I request everyone to kindly donate to this important cause and help impact a life today. I plan to visit India this summer and it would be great if this goal can be reached by June 15th, 2023. I will keep you regularly posted on all the updates of this project.