A year ago, my sister and I were watching a documentary about a woman who was making sanitary pads to send to Africa where they are in short supply. We immediately thought that it was a great idea and that we should do something similar for the women in Puerto Rico. We would be able to help not only people in need, but also our environment. We wanted to make a product that was practical and that truly worked. A product that would be easy to keep in a purse and beautiful at the same time. We also wanted to create an easy to recognize brand name and came up with the name “Punto” (literal translation for “Period” in Spanish). We asked our mother for advice on possible fabrics and materials to use and began experimenting. For four months we worked on the design (many drawings and patterns) and produced many prototypes, until we finally achieved the best combination of materials (bamboo cotton, microfibers, and absorbent fabrics), the ideal shape (two different sizes), and most importantly, we made sure that the Punto pads worked. We are extremely proud of the final product and very happy that by creating, making, and donating the Punto pads we will be able to help many women.This week we were able to donate the first batch of 120 Punto Pads to the Mesón de Amor non-for-profit foundation. Meson de Amor provides food and supplies to financially strapped university students. The students were so happy and grateful to receive the Punto pads that it really moved us. Next week we will donate another 120 Punto Pads to the women at the Casa Protegida Julio de Burgos. We want Punto to be a project of love that will impact many people for many years to come.
Valeria Murray, Baldwin Class of 2023