Going to a Clippers game and realize you need a tampon? Or maybe you’re at an Ohio State football game and suddenly find yourself wishing you had packed a little better.
Columbus has now made that particular emergency a lot easier to deal with.
Huntington Park, home of the Columbus Clippers, has joined the city’s other major sports venues in offering free period products to guests, making Columbus the first city in the country to provide free period products at all of its major sports venues.
The products are provided through Columbus-founded company Aunt Flow, which has installed 165 free-vend period product dispensers across the city’s major sports facilities. The dispensers provide pads and tampons at no cost, meaning you can grab what you need without having to hunt down a vending machine or make an emergency trip to the nearest drugstore.
And yes, the program covers a pretty impressive amount of Columbus real estate.
Where Can You Find Free Period Products?
Free period products are now available at:
- Ohio Stadium: 45 dispensers
- Greater Columbus Convention Center: 45 dispensers
- Nationwide Arena: 27 dispensers
- ScottsMiracle-Gro Field: 16 dispensers
- Historic Crew Stadium: 14 dispensers
- Huntington Park: 10 dispensers
- Schottenstein Center: 8 dispensers
That means fans heading to see the Buckeyes, Blue Jackets, Crew, Crew 2, Clippers and Columbus Fury can all access free period products during their visits.
The addition of Huntington Park is what completed the citywide lineup.
“As a Columbus native, I couldn’t be more proud or excited for this partnership with the Columbus Clippers,” said Claire Coder, founder and CEO of Aunt Flow. “This is a defining milestone for Columbus and a powerful example of what it looks like to make the fan experience more inclusive and accessible.”
The Clippers see it as another way to make a day at the ballpark a little more comfortable for their guests. More than 500,000 people visit Huntington Park each year, according to Clippers President Tyler Parsons.
“We’re incredibly excited to partner with Aunt Flow to join their overall mission and to provide our guests with complimentary products,” Parsons said.
The move also comes as Columbus prepares to host some major sporting events of its own. Nationwide Arena will host the NCAA Division I Women’s Final Four and NCAA Division I Women’s Volleyball Championship in 2027, while a new National Women’s Soccer League expansion team is expected to begin playing at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field in 2028.
For city leaders, the free period product program is part of a larger push to make Columbus a destination for women’s and girls’ sports, including the city’s IgniteHER Columbus initiative.
But the idea of making period products available in public spaces here isn’t exactly new.
Columbus began working toward menstrual equity nearly a decade ago with a 2017 pilot program that provided products in city recreation centers and homeless shelters.
Now, that effort has expanded to some of the biggest sports venues in the city, just as Columbus is putting more focus on making the city a destination for women’s and girls’ sports. It’s a small change in the grand scheme of things, but a pretty meaningful one for the people who need it.
