Love Glove Club to deliver protection

BY KELSEE DODSON-CARTER: Staff Reporter

Mail isn’t the only thing being delivered to students on Central Washington University’s campus. Lubricant, dental dams, and male and female condoms are all being supplied to students who participate in the Wellness Center’s Wellness Delivers program.

“STIs, STDs and unintended pregnancies are rampant on college campuses,” said Jadie Dahl, junior public health major and Wellness Center employee. “If we can provide [protection for] students, then we’re going to do it.”

The Wellness Delivers program has been on campus for approximately five years and currently has 40 participants. Each quarter, students who live on campus may sign up and tell the Wellness Center what items they want. Students have a variety options to choose from to practice safe sex. The items are then gathered and put into goodie bags by the Wellness Center staff and discreetly delivered to the students.

Recently, many students have been turned away due to the funding shortage.
“I shop around for the best deals on condoms,” Dahl said. “But we do get some donations.”

However, Dahl’s bargain shopping is not enough to provide the services of Wellness Delivers to every participating student, even with donations from Trojan and Lifestyle.
To keep the program running, the Wellness Center is attempting to get the Love Glove Club approved by the Associated Students of Central Washington University Board of Directors (ASCWU-BOD). The club will be open to all students, whether they live on or off campus. Students who become a part of the club will pay $15 per quarter to receive 5 condoms each week and access to condom specials.

The Love Glove Club was recognized by the ASCWU-BOD on Tuesday. Now that the club is approved, they can begin advertising and involving as many people as possible.
The Wellness Center hopes to prevent unprotected sex that can lead to STDs and unwanted pregnancies.

“Permanent STDs are far more scary than a pregnancy, since there are ways to deal with” pregnancy, said Aaron Akimoff, sophomore Russian language major.
Celia Johnson, registered nurse at the student health center, believes students are being more responsible when it comes to sex.

“I think people are more knowledgeable about being sexually responsible,” Johnson said. “Whether or not they put it to practice is up to them.”