A reminder that there are good people doing wonderful things in the world.

Jeff Williams has been given the title of ‘Tampon Man’ and received heaps of praise after he nipped out to buy sausages, only to return with thousands of sanitary towels to help those in poverty.

Jeff, 55, had only planned to pop into Morrisons for some sausages but ended up spending more than £75 on tampons and pads after learning about period poverty.

Now Jeff is hoping to make picking up trolley-loads of pads a Christmas tradition.

The IT manager was inspired to help out those on their periods after his partner Louise Cooke, 54, came home from a day of work at charity Faith and Hope Enterprise, providing supported housing for those in need.

Louise told Jeff that some of the women she helped were unable to afford sanitary products and so used a sock in place of a pad. Naturally, Jeff was horrified. He knew he needed to do something to make a difference.

Jeff said: ‘My partner Louise came home last week really upset which she doesn’t often do. She actually cried and she was just rolling through her day.

‘And one of the things that really struck me was one of the women had said “I need a sock” and that’s what it was about – she was menstruating.

‘She didn’t have anything, she didn’t have any money and she uses socks and a lot of the women do – or [use] whatever they’ve got around.

‘The following week I went down to Morrisons for some sausages for lunch and I ended up with a trolley stood there staring at the tampons with no idea which size or what kind.

‘And I just piled a whole lot into the trolley with a packet of sausages.’

Since the death of Jeff’s mum in 2012, Jeff has created his own festive tradition of buying something for a stranger in need each year – as he doesn’t have a mum to buy a present for anymore.

This year, learning about the reality of period poverty prompted Jeff to focus on providing sanitary products for those in need.

Jeff shared photos of his trolley – along with the story of why he’d bought all those pads – on Facebook, where the post is inspiring thousands to do something kind.

He wrote: ‘I got so many funny looks walking around Morrisons today with a trolley overflowing with sanitary towels and tampons but nobody dared to ask if I was okay lol.

‘I was shocked when I overheard Lollo last week saying that some of the women housed by her charity in Derby and Belper have so little that they often have to use their socks because they have no money for sanitary products.

‘It’s such an overlooked aspect of poverty and homelessness.

‘Here’s at least a small relief in dignity over the Christmas period. Sorry for the pun.

‘I don’t have a mum to buy for at Christmas anymore so since she died I always try to find a way to spend it on a stranger in need – on my mum’s behalf. It makes me incredibly happy.

‘Don’t forget to do something nice for a stranger this Christmas.

‘Oh, and yes, DO post it on social media in the hope it encourages others to do the same.’

The post ended up being shared more than 53,000 times and receiving 9,100 comments, as well as earning Jeff the title of ‘Tampon Man’.

Jeff says he received some funny looks for buying period products in bulk, but it’s all worth it to know he’s lending a hand to someone who needs it.

‘The looks I was getting,’ he said. ‘As I put the first pack in, a woman standing next to me with her grandma or someone gave me a look.

‘I put another pack in and then I grabbed two handfuls and more and more.

‘She said to the old lady ‘are these the ones you normally have’ and then they just stopped and stared at me, and then they just walked away. I was fine with it, I knew what I was doing, of course.

‘I got some milk and other bits and pieces and went to the checkout and there was a massive queue.

‘So I was passed by a lot of people, all of them staring at me, staring at the trolley, staring at me and moving on.

‘[People were] just puzzled. But no one dared ask me if I was okay or if my partner was okay. I was thinking maybe they think I’ve got a woman bleeding to death at home or something.

‘The trolley was literally overflowing. I’d packed them all in at the bottom nice and tidy and then I’d thrown a load on top and they were the ones that kept falling off.

‘The checkout lady was playing poker face, which I guess they’re trained to do.’

Jeff hopes that his small act of kindness will create a ripple effect, encouraging everyone who sees his gesture to do some good of their own.

He added: ‘It’s been rarely refreshing – the first few thousand comments were from women but then a few men started coming in and a lot of people have said that they’re going to do the same.

‘It’s an invisible and very personal poverty problem so it’s not really talked about and no one really considers it.

‘I’m not professing to be some kind of expert in it but I know when Louise told me about it I was horrified and I’m in a position to do something for these women at least.

‘Now Louise and her daughter call me Tampon Man and the guys at work call me ‘Sanitary Man’ like I’m a superhero and that’s my superpower. I don’t mind – it’s all good.

‘The main thing is it’s highlighted this issue that obviously has hit a lot of nerves and a lot of women and I’m glad to say men have really jumped on it and pushed it.

‘As far as raising awareness they’ve credited me but they’ve done it by pushing this post around.’

Source: Read Full Article