Like Mother, Like Daughter: Working to Wipe Out Diaper Need

by, Jade Miles

Helping mothers and babies comes naturally to mother-daughter team Michelle and Corinne Delp. This dynamic duo has made a big impact on families experiencing diaper need in their hometown of Rome, PA.

Michelle Delp, RN, has been a nurse for 30 years, and for the last 7.5 years she has worked as a maternal-child home visiting nurse for Nurse Family Partnership (NFP) of Bradford, Sullivan, and Tioga counties in Pennsylvania. She works with first-time low-income moms beginning in the second trimester of pregnancy through their child’s second birthday. NFP nurses offer the support these women need to deliver healthy babies, become confident parents, and achieve their life goals. Michelle is certified as a childbirth educator, birth and bereavement doula, and lactation counselor.

It’s no wonder that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree; Michelle’s daughter Corinne starts nursing school at Arnot Ogden Medical Center this fall. Corinne has had many opportunities to learn from her mother. She shadowed her mother when Michelle was a camp nurse, and they have even found themselves helping out side by side at the scene of several accidents. Corinne’s natural caring instincts and up-close-and-personal experiences with her mom have put her on the path to becoming a nurse.

Before graduating from North Rome Christian School this past spring, Corinne needed to complete a senior year service project. Driven by her love for babies and children, Corrine—who also works as a nanny—chose to organize a diaper drive for the Endless Mountain Pregnancy Care Center (EMPCC) in Towanda, PA. She called it “Bottoms Up for EMPCC.”

Corinne first learned of EMPCC when they came to speak at her church and became increasingly familiar with the organization by serving at their yearly fundraising banquets. Knowing that EMPCC is frequently in short supply of diapers and moms can’t use food stamps to pay for them, Corinne felt certain that a diaper drive would be perfect for her project and would also serve a great need in the community. She fulfilled her 30-hour requirement while working tirelessly to market and organize the drive, as well as collect, transport, and stock diaper donations at EMPCC.

They advertised the diaper drive on Facebook for just under a month, and word soon spread about the event. The volume of donations exceeded Corinne’s expectations: The grand total came to 6,212 diapers; they had also had several people donate wipes. Michelle credits their success to the true sense of community in her small town.

Another clever idea? Add a little incentive to encourage folks to donate. Michelle and Corinne took advantage of a Target promotion and created a Target registry with diapers in a variety of sizes and also some wipes to help people reach the free shipping total. The promotion the first week was to purchase three packs of diapers and receive a $20 gift card; the second week, it as a $30 gift card with a purchase of two bulk packs or a $10 gift card with the purchase of two giant packs.

All items were delivered to Michelle and Corinne’s home, and they personally delivered everything to EMPCC. Both ladies said that hearing the UPS truck come by was always exciting because it signaled the arrival of more donations. In fact, North Rome Christian School administrator and EMPCC board member Lee Ann Carmichael decided to request that more shelves be built to accommodate the influx of diapers at EMPCC. At the end of the drive, Corinne’s senior class of 10 students filled those shelves to the brim, all as a result of the kindness and generosity of their friends, neighbors, and colleagues.

The experience left a lasting impression on this mother-daughter pair, and they were both touched to see people coming together to make a difference. “People are generous, even when they don’t have enough for themselves,” said Michelle, referring to several of her clients from NFP who wanted to donate leftover diapers from their children as they had changed sizes (Note: Most banks will accept loose diapers or open packs; just call ahead to ask).

“I learned that being able to reach out and communicate with others outside of my normal social circle is an excellent skill to develop,” said Corinne. “I live in a community that is very supportive of others’ endeavors. It’s beautiful to see a large number of people rally behind a cause.”

Corinne and Michelle’s diaper donations are just one example of what nurses are doing to end diaper need—and their efforts will count toward our 2016 Healthy Mom&Baby Diaper Drive goal of 250,000 diapers donated. We want to hear your story, too! Go online to AWHONN.org/diaperdrive to let us know what you’re doing to help the 1 in 3 families who experience diaper need.

For more information on how you can start a diaper drive in your community, contact Healthy Mom&Baby Diaper Drive consultants Jade Miles ([email protected]) and Heather Quaile ([email protected]).

Jade K. Miles, BA, BSN, RN, is a nurse consultant for the Healthy Mom&Baby Diaper Drive and lives in Raleigh, NC.