While volunteering at a local food pantry…
after Hurricane Irma, members of the Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL learned of the urgent need to provide period supplies to help alleviate “period poverty” among women and girls in our community.
Through a series of fortuitous events, APS board members were invited to attend the first Summit for Period Poverty in Atlanta in October of 2018, hosted by the national Alliance for Period Supplies organization. With the information and support received from the Summit, we established a local nonprofit in January, 2019 with the sole purpose of buying and distributing period products as well as educating the public about this critical and overlooked basic need.
The Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL serves Collier and Lee Counties. Our focus is to make period products available to women and girls living in poverty. We do this through the existing network of food pantries, nonprofit agencies and schools in our communities. At present our distribution partners reach: Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Punta Gorda, Estero, Bonita Springs, Alva, Naples, Immokalee, Golden Gate, Marco Island and Everglades City.
Across the US and throughout the world…
women and girls who cannot afford period products are using socks, rags, etc. and often suffer from urinary tract infections, embarrassment and low self-esteem. They are missing work and school because of this lack of appropriate personal hygiene products. To add to this crisis situation, period supplies cannot be purchased with Federal Food Stamps (SNAP), because they are considered a luxury item. In many states they are heavily taxed.
Period Hygiene is NOT a Luxury…
It is a basic need.
Our Mission and Vision
Mission:
Provide free, monthly period products to financially-challenged women and girls and educate the public about Period Poverty.
Vision:
Menstruators will participate fully in daily life and and no longer be absent from school or work due to lack of period supplies.
Our Board
Dusti Beaubien – president
Living in many locations during the past 50 years, led to a love of volunteering for Dusti. Training volunteers at Ronald McDonald House in Ann Arbor was the beginning, followed by something new at every location. When she moved to Florida in 2000 she quickly found Café of Life and The League Club. GNL Class XIII opened her eyes to all the wonderful nonprofits in SWFL. She learned so much working on the board of Laces of Love, Naples Garden Club and The League Club, started a foundation in her community, and was honored to be among the Women of Initiative in 2017.
Having traveled to many Third World Countries, she was aware of Period Poverty but did not know it existed in the US. Shortly after Hurricane Irma, while volunteering at Meals of Hope’s warehouse, Katie Schweickhardt enlightened the group about the need for period products. A series of fortuitous events led to the beginning of Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL in January, 2019.
mary beth jones – vice president
Mary Beth is a retired financial services executive, specializing in private wealth management and branch bank management in Lake Forest, Illinois. She was an active board member of The Chicago Junior League, Lake Forest Women’s Club, Lake Forest Symphony, and was awarded the Woman Volunteer of Lake Forest 2009.
Since retiring and moving to Naples in 2013 she has been on the boards of The League Club, Greater Naples Leadership and is a member of Naples Garden Club. She has continued her passion for education and women by working with Champions for Learning in their high school Entrepreneurship for Business student program. Now as Vice President of Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL the commitment to help young women and girls fully participate in daily life is truly her mission.
Liz Winebrenner – treasurer
Having vacationed in Naples for 42 years Liz moved here ten years ago after retiring from working in finance at a real estate company. She has been active in the community, serving on the board for Fresh Start for Abused Women and various positions at The League Club, serving from Treasurer to President and for a number of years on its Community Involvement Committee.
It was while she was President of The League Club that the dire need to supply period products to women and girls was discovered by Dusti Beaubien. Liz joined the Board of APS of SWFL at inception and currently serves as its Treasurer. She wonders who could ever have thought that period supplies would be deemed a luxury.
Susan M Harris, MBA – Secretary
Susan left cold and snowy Chicago to become a full-time Naples resident in 2017. She is Co-Founder and Senior Partner of NorthStar Strategies, a marketing consulting firm. Her diverse business experience includes client assignments with Allstate, Amoco, Federal Reserve Bank, Kellogg’s, Monsanto and Pillsbury. Susan’s passion for volunteer service ignited when she chose to lead by example for her four children. She has never looked back.
Susan was elected to the Winnetka, IL Board of Education and served for 8 years. She served on the Executive Board of the Winnetka Caucus Council. She was president of the New Trier Swim Club, and served on the board for 7 years. She was both a Boy Scout and Girl Scout leader. Susan continues her service commitment in Florida having served on the boards of The League Club and The Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL. She is committed to initiatives that support “Women Helping Women.”
Marilyn Bartter
Marilyn has worked with not-for-profit institutions both professionally as Vice President for Campbell & Company- a major National Philanthropic Consulting firm where she led the strategy for many Capital Campaigns and Institutional Advancement Programs for over 20 years. As a volunteer she has served in a number of board and leadership positions for Cornell University, The Association of Fund Raising Professionals, The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, The Parkways Foundation, The Music Institute of Chicago, Junior League of Chicago, Winnetka Community House, Evanston Hospital, Girl Scouts, The Boy Scout Venture Crew program and the American Red Cross.
After 42 years in Winnetka, Illinois Marilyn now spends winters in Naples. Her volunteer work continues as a member of The League Club where she recently chaired the Community Involvement Committee. She is currently a Board member of Naples Botanical Garden where she serves on the Development Committee and is a graduate of Greater Naples Leadership Class XXIII. Her passion for providing period products to underserved women and girls has been added to her long list of community commitments.
Kathryn Bettis
Kathryn Bettis is a Florida resident splitting time between Naples and Glenview, IL. She is a member of Class XXIV of the Greater Naples Leadership Program, currently serving as the board secretary, and as a member of the membership committee. She is a Deacon at the Naples United Church of Christ and is a Governor for the Iowa State University Foundation.
She is a past board member of Hands of Peace, served as co-chair of a golf fundraiser for Baby Basics in Naples and was past president, board member and volunteer of Village Treasure House in Glenview, IL.
Kathryn is a retired grammar school teacher, was graduated from Iowa St. University with a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and from National Louis University with a Master’s Degree in Education. ing as first Vice President of the PTO. Tori is verypassionate about women’s and children’s issues.
Maryanne Dignan
Maryanne came to Bonita Springs in 2003 from the Boston area and has been a very active member of the community through board positions with The League Club. She has also been involved with tutoring through New Horizons of SWFL.
Prior to moving to Florida, Mary Anne was also a very active volunteer in Massachusetts;including using her education in art history and professional experience working at The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, to develop a cultural arts program for schools. She was a long-time member of The Junior League of Boston as well as a volunteer at the Concord Museum in Concord, Massachusetts. She also served as a trustee and the Head of the Parents Committee for the Dana Hall School.
Through her work in the community and particularly in education, Maryanne has seen how important the mission to end period poverty is so that girls can fully participate in educational opportunities.
Jenny Hay
Jenny grew up in Illinois and raised two children in Evanston. In 2021, Jenny and her husband, Tom, relocated to Naples and became full-time residents. Jenny started her career in Chicago with Citibank primarily in electronic banking and later worked in various other retail outlets. Deciding to stay home with two kids, she became very involved in the nonprofit world.
As a member of the Junior League of Chicago, Jenny held various roles including Vice President of Membership and fundraising Co-Chair for many fundraising events. She was involved at Loyola Academy as part of the Women of Wisdom group and school committees.
Jenny became a member of the woman’s board of Children’s Home and Aid in Chicago and was a Gala chair and served as President of their board. She still remains an honorary member. Jenny is a member of The League Club and currently serving on the board. She is also a member of the Pelican Bay Woman’s League.
Gail Kedrus
Newly retired, Gail now has the time to focus her energies on community involvement both in SW Florida and the Berkshires. During her long professional life in sales, she worked in two fast paced industries - the fashion industry and international logistics for well-known global companies. She has always energetically pursued a variety of interests and embraced commitments to her local community.
Currently, Gail is a volunteer at Literary Volunteers of Collier County, the Hancock Shaker Village and Dorot.
She believes that eliminating period poverty is a basic health necessity. Doing so would provide women and girls with the security needed to pursue so many more educational and career opportunities and in turn afford them a more meaningful life.
Susan A. Mainwaring
Susan has extensive experience as a volunteer in Naples and Collier County. She is past president of The League Club where she held a variety of positions in the organization. She is active at her church as an Elder, Deacon and treasurer of the Women’s Group. Susan is also a graduate of Greater Naples Leadership Class VI.
In 1996 she was named Executive Director of Classic Chamber Concerts and served for eleven years in the non-profit arts community of Collier County. Before moving to Florida full time, Susan was CEO of an appliance distributorship and worked in the travel industry. Her first job was as an elementary school teacher at the American School of Mexico City. Susan is devoted to ending Period Poverty.
Terri Osiecki
Terri comes to Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL from a background as an educator in a suburban Boston public school system where she taught many at risk students. From the beginning, her involvement with students extended beyond the classroom to learning about their families, their greater needs and finding assistance for them.
After leaving teaching she started her own family and was involved in all aspects of education at their schools including the Parents Association, chairing many events and much fundraising. She then transitioned to business where she took on the role of office manager. Her transition from work up north to Bonita Springs with its two most recent hurricanes has made it imperative for her to connect with young women here.
Mary Kiely
Mary is a new resident to Florida splitting time between Naples and Berwyn, PA. She is excited to learn more about the Naples community and participate in volunteer activities supporting women and girls of Southwest Florida. In Pennsylvania Mary served as treasurer on several boards including the Conestoga Crew Team and Chester Valley Women's Golf. She also served on the auxiliary board of T&E Cares dedicated to helping financially disadvantaged students navigate the FASFA process.
Mary is a retired CPA with a Bachelors of Arts degree in Accounting from Franklin and Marshall College. She began her career as an auditor at Price Waterhouse then held various positions in the accounting and treasury departments at CIGNA in the Property and Casualty Division.
Skylar O’Reilly
Skylar is finalizing her B.A. in Anthropology with a minor in Integrated Studies at FGCU. She currently works at the university’s Archives and Collections as an intern, as well as holding a board position with the FGCU chapter of Generation Action through Planned Parenthood.
Her work with the Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL began in the Fall of 2021 as our first Campus Ambassador Leadership Intern. The issue of Period Poverty is a personal matter for Skylar, who has dealt with this issue at times throughout her life. The APS mission aligns with her passions including feminism and equality. She will be working in an alumna advising role to aide future FGCU volunteer involvement and using this experience as a model for other colleges across SWFL to create a greater impact in the fight against period poverty.
Jean Ann Lynch – Ex Officio Member
We are very fortunate to have Jean Ann as our advisor and cheerleader!
More than 28 years ago, Jean Ann started Baby Basics in Ridgewood, New Jersey quickly adding locations in Vermont and Massachusetts. In 2004 she brought Baby Basics to Collier County providing diapers to hundreds of babies.
As Director and Founder of Baby Basics National Development Corp, the umbrella group for the 13 national Baby Basic programs, she understands how important basic necessities are to families living at the poverty level. Her experience and expertise in the nonprofit world have been invaluable to Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL.
danielle viens-payne
Danielle is a Relationship Manager at Champions For Learning, The Education Foundation of Collier County, managing volunteers for the Collier County Public Schools entrepreneurship program and managing Champions For Learning college student programming. She was previously a Program Coordinator for six years for middle and high school programs at the Boys & Girls Club of Collier County at both the Naples and Immokalee Club locations. Danielle has been working in the nonprofit sector for over 13 years, beginning her career in Baltimore working with at-risk and immigrant youth and their families, teaching English to adults and high school students, and helping them graduate and move on to post-secondary education or job training programs.
While working at Boys & Girls Club, she partnered with the Alliance for Period Supplies of Southwest Florida to connect period supplies with young girls and their families in need. During the pandemic she orchestrated the distribution of period supplies during the Club’s weekly meal distributions in both Naples and Immokalee.
Danielle is the co-founder of Stilettos in the Boardroom, a women’s networking group designed to encourage and empower women to be their unapologetic confident selves in the personal and professional world. Stilettos in the Boardroom is focused on helping to build communities and businesses.
Her community work and passion to eradicate period poverty in SWFL led Danielle to join the Board of Directors of APS of SWFL in 2020. She currently serves as the Board’s Community Outreach Committee Chair.
Jan Palmer – In Memoriam
Our beloved and talented board member, Jan Palmer, passed away on February 12, 2022. Jan was fierce in her convictions and her commitment to ending Period Poverty. In lieu of flowers it was requested in her obituary that donations be made to Alliance for Period Supplies of SWFL.
Jan’s volunteer and advocacy work included NJ Chapter and state board representative with the National Organization for Women. She was a lobbyist and North Jersey Field representative with the National Breast Cancer Coalition. She was a volunteer at the Alliance for the Arts and a Cuddler at Cape Coral Hospital.
We miss Jan and all the attributes she brought to our board.
Our National Network
The Alliance for Period Supplies is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, launched in May 2018, with the support of founding sponsor U by Kotex®. The Alliance for Period Supplies is comprised of regional Allied Programs that collect, warehouse and distribute period supplies in local communities.
We are proud to be one of their nation-wide Allied Programs all of which are community-based trusted resources and advocates for individuals who struggle to afford material basic needs.