Between the #metoo movement and the backlash that ensued from the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, female empowerment is at the forefront of society. This call to empower women is being answered at ELHS by seniors Neva Flickinger and Karly Sorrentino, founders of the new Women’s Empowerment Club.
The goal of the club? To help women and children who are having a hard time, to raise awareness in the school with volunteer opportunities, and to put feminine hygiene products in the bathrooms according to club advisor Emily Archer.
So far the club has raised over $100 for the Safe Futures women’s shelter of New London to support victims of domestic abuse.
“Being able to [donate to the shelter] made me feel like the group was really going to have an impact on lives, I’m proud of what we have been able to accomplish so fast,” Sorrentino said.
Recently the club “adopted” a family for Christmas, which entailed members coming together to donate to a single mother and her son.
“We were able to provide almost everything on the list, both necessities and gifts. Our club was able to come together and do something that could actually make a difference,” Flickinger said. According to Ms. Archer, while delivering the donations, the woman from Safe Futures said they had gone above and beyond.
Currently, the club is working on getting sanitary product bins in the girls’ bathrooms at ELHS.
“We’re waiting for approval, but right now the products are in the nurse’s office, which is kind of hard for a girl to [access], so we want to make it easier for them,” Sorrentino said. This particular project comes with its challenges.
“We’re trying to figure out how to get period products donated. If we had a ‘period drive’ you don’t know how people would react or what they would do,” Sorrentino said, further proving the necessity of this club.
Although running the club isn’t always easy, the support given to the community is well worth it.
“They’ve already done so much, I’m so proud of [Neva and Karly]…there’s so much caring for actually bringing things to fruition – not just talking about them – and I just want to see them stay on that trajectory,” Ms. Archer said.
Sorrentino and Flickinger run the weekly meetings where they discuss plans for the future.
“We like to have feedback from our group members because we want to make sure that our club has a variety of inputs and ideas,” Sorrentino said.
“Meetings run very smoothly, everyone is ready to listen and contribute when they need to,” Flickinger continued.
Sorrentino and Flickinger both plan on continuing to follow their passion for women’s empowerment in college.
“What I really hope is that there’s someone who wants to see this keep going, that [Neva and Karly] set this foundation,” Ms. Archer said.
