The Southwest Region of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. (SWR-DST) conducted a service project in Fort Worth on Wednesday, August 10, 2022, as a part of the biennial Southwest Regional Conference taking place from August 11-14, 2022.
The conference galvanized members from Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Arkansas, and Jamaica as they celebrated 90 years of being the BLAZING Southwest Region under the theme, “Reflecting on the Past…As we Focus on the Future.”
The event was held at Morningside Middle School, 2751 Mississippi Ave, Fort Worth, TX 76104.
To highlight their focus on addressing the impact of period poverty in our communities, SWR-DST has partnered with Fort Worth ISD, The City of Fort Worth, DIG Construction, Community Frontline, and Pragmatic Prodigies. The partnership signifies the collective effort to address systemic health inequities in 76104.
According to members, as a service organization, they “recognize the ongoing hardships our communities are facing which have been exacerbated because of the ongoing pandemic. Two years ago, our conference was canceled as we planned to highlight the trauma that gun violence has and continues to have through every sector of DFW. Although COVID altered many of our plans, our team moved forward with the then service project of a ‘Create Change’ mural that many of our residents utilize as a photo backdrop on the side of the locally-owned coffee shop, Black Coffee, located in Southeast Fort Worth. The community mural serves as a constant reminder of our individual and collective responsibilities to create change.”
The service project focused on what is known as Period Poverty, to tackle an area of systemic health inequities that evolves into the barriers faced in adulthood.
The Plan
Wednesday, August 10th, members of Delta Sigma Theta convened at the Morningside Middle School for an Impact Day which included:
- Repurposing of an unused campus portable building into a Community Resource Center that will not only house hygiene items but also serve as space for community education classes such as health and wellness, employment resources, financial literacy courses for adults and students
- Creation of Period Packs for young girls that included educational materials that will aid every young girl to face her menstruation with confidence
- Painting of a mural identifying the space as a community resource center
The mural was a concept created by students at Morningside Middle School, sketched by Ruben Orozco of DNZDesigns.
