A red-haired woman in a light teal dress held a clear plastic cube and an oddly shaped condom on the Student Plaza Wednesday. As she demonstrated how the condom should be inserted, students gawked, smirked and eyed in curiosity.
Holly Calvasina is a community partnership assistant for Choices, an independent center for reproductive health located in Memphis. During the University of Memphis’ Student Health Fair, Calvasina explained the usage and benefits of the “female†condom.
“You don’t have to worry about it slipping out once it is put in properly,†Calvasina said. “Your body heat will make the condom softer and connect it inside the walls.â€
Condoms were just one of the topics discussed at the fair. Students gathered around about 40 different booths manned by organizations such as the Counseling Center, the campus garden and Planned Parenthood. Each booth’s focus ranged from safe sex to pregnancy to healthy, active lifestyles and general health checks.
Besides advocating for safe sex, Choices assists with “free-standing birth,†where mothers give birth in a home-like space with a midwife. The clinic’s goal is to “completely transform the way reproductive health care is perceived and provided in our community,†according to Calvasina. The center provides information about abortion along with counseling.
“We want to make sure we have full consent,†Calvasina said. “Are you wanting to have the abortion, or does your father, mother, uncle or grandmother want you to make the decision? Are you here because of you?â€
The organization believes health care is for everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or marital status, according to Calvasina.
“Some people in the LGBT community don’t feel comfortable at major hospitals and clinics,†Calvasina said. “In regards to transgender, hospital staff will use the wrong pronouns. If they recognize as ‘they,’ they might be called ‘he.’ Before equal marriage, it was hard for the LGBT community to be clinically tested.â€
A committee of about 20 members and 40 volunteers set up this fair annually and have done so for nearly 15 years.
“It is a success,†Earle Donelson, coordinator for triage and outreach in the Counseling Center at the university, said. “Nearly 2,000 to 3,000 people visit the fair. We are helping people learn about what’s on campus and in the community.â€
Students went from booth to booth receiving information. Some students even obtained free food by signing paw prints on a white evaluation sheet.
Nurse-Family Partnership, also represented at the fair, is an organization dedicated to the in-home support and education of mothers who are pregnant with their first child. The organization sends registered nurses to pregnant mothers’ houses to help council mothers until their babies are two years of age. The service is free for residents in the Memphis and Shelby County area.
“The goal is to improve pregnancy outcomes, prevent childhood injuries and promote social and economic stability,†Jessica Bain, a registered nurse and alumni of the university, said.
Birthright of Memphis Inc., located on Alexander Street, is a pregnancy counseling center for expecting mothers and provides free pregnancy tests for women.
“The service is free and confidential,†Elizabeth Bardos, assistant director and director of volunteers, said. “The goal is to make sure no one is alone.â€
Groups like Birthright have cooperated with the university at the fair for several years.
“We love it,†Bardos said. “We get to see the students here, and there’s good energy in the fair.â€
