Food, water, shelter—these are all basic needs. For babies, there’s another item that tops that list: diapers. This year, Healthy Mom&Baby is partnering with the NDBN to raise awareness and to share the names, voices and stories of the families in every community who are struggling to provide for their youngest children.

As we spoke with moms affected by diaper need each one shared a similar truth: This small gesture—donating diapers, or dollars for diapers to families in need in your community—may not seem like much,but it can mean the world when you’re struggling to take care of your family.

Making Difficult CHOICES

“I think there are a lot of misconceptions about people who get help from the diaper bank. We work very hard to make ends meet… I go without a lot of things to make sure my kids are taken care of.” Lacey Cotton, mom to Hailey, Jarrod & Aurin

Lacey gave birth to her youngest son 6 weeks earlier than planned. “We knew that we would have certain expenses with the baby, but then having to bump all those payments up… we weren’t quite prepared,” she says. With her baby now 10 months old, Lacey is working long hours to support him and her 6-year-old son while her boyfriend takes care of the kids at home. “I use my car for work, and there are some days when it feels like a toss-up: Do I spend $30 on gas or $30 on diapers?”

Lacey first came in contact with her local diaper bank through her church, which frequently donates diapers. “It’s so important to give back to your community, to pull together and support one another—especially where women and children are concerned,” she says. “You never know when something is going to come along, and a family might need just a little more help. Getting support from the diaper bank has made a huge difference for my family.”

Lacey’s young son also has sensitive skin, which means she has to be careful about which diapers she uses and how frequently she changes him. “Knowing that I have enough diapers, and that I won’t have to leave him in a dirty one too long, risking him getting a rash, is such a relief,” she says. “I just want my kids to be happy and healthy.”

Finding Hope and Kindness in the Community

“Knowing I have diapers for my children means one less thing to worry about. It takes some of the stress away, and I know that there’s hope out there.” Venessa Baez, mom to John-Carlos, Raul & Natalie

When Venessa Baez’s second son was a baby, she knew something wasn’t quite right with his eating. “He was always spitting food up, and he couldn’t really consume it properly,” she says. Diagnosed withpancreatic divisum, Venessa’s son had to be a on a feeding tube to help with his chronic pancreatitis.

Already living paycheck to paycheck, Venessa was dismayed to learn that her Medicaid benefits would not be enough to help her shoulder the weight of the mounting medical costs.

Venessa found support from an Early Head Start Home Base Program. “A nurse would visit me every single week, bringing me diapers,” she explains. “I also received diapers from an organization called Welcome Baby, and I saw these stickers that said ‘Diaper Bank of North Carolina.’ These groups, with people just giving out of the goodness of their hearts… they’re truly godsends.”

There were definitely moments when times got tough, Venessa recalls. “I would be exhausted, and I didn’t want to do the home visit, but I stuck with it,” she says. “And the Early Head Start Program changed my life: They believed in me and helped me get a job with Durham Connects, where I’m able to help moms and give back to the community that was there for me when I needed it. It’s a ripple effect.”

Doing Whatever It Takes to Be a Good Parent

“I have a job to do as a parent, and that’s make sure my children have what they need.” Natasha Rivera-LaButhie, mom to Liana, Hailey & Angel

Natasha Rivera-LaButhie was overjoyed to learn she was expecting—then her doctor delivered the news that she was actually pregnant with triplets. “We were prepared for one child,” she says, “but findingout it was multiples? Say what? Needless to say, my husband and I knew there would be a lot more costs coming our way.” Additionally, Natasha did not qualify for her employer’s medical benefits as a new hire; she received state medical insurance instead.

Before entering her 3rd trimester, Natasha lost one of the babies and began having medical complications, becoming hospitalized for 75 days before giving birth. A hospital resource staff personencouraged Natasha to sign up for the diaper bank. Though she was initially hesitant about asking for help, bills were piling up. The twins’ daycare also required a full day’s supply of diapers, and she would have to leave work to bring more if they ran out. “I threw my pride out the window and signed up,” Natasha says. “It helps me to be a better parent. I have more time to tend to my kids’ needs, and I know they’re being taken care of.”

Natasha’s local organization supported her with more than just diapers: “It was actually a church. I remember coming in there sometimes, feeling tired of my job, my bills… I felt like a bad parent because I couldn’t afford these basic necessities for my kids,” she says. “But people there didn’t judge me; they would welcome me with a smile and offer to pray for me and my family—it really meant a lot to have their encouragement and support.”

These days, Natasha enjoys quality time playing outside and reading books with her family and working with the New Haven MOMS Partnership. “Sometimes I meet women who don’t want to ask for help,” she says. “To those moms I say, ‘Why would you not take advantage of a service that solely exists to help you take care of your family?’”

Summer Hunt is the editorial coordinator for publications at AWHONN.

5.3 million US babies are affected by Diaper Need. Donate $10 to diaper a baby for a week!

Donate dollars for diapers at Healthy Mom&Baby’s diaper drive campaign to Wipe Out Diaper Need.

National Diaper Bank Network: Turning the Tide Against Diaper Need
Inspiring Hope, Health, and Happy Bottoms
A Diaper Ministry Is Born

National Diaper Bank Network: Turning the Tide Against Diaper Need

by, Joanne Goldblum, BA, MSW

Joanne Goldblum , NDBN

Recently, we received a powerful video from a mom in California named Bryanne. At 17 years old, she and her fiancé, a young Marine recruit, were struggling to make ends meet, and there simply wasn’t enough money in the monthly budget to buy enough diapers. She discovered that government safety-net programs like food stamps (SNAP) cannot be used to purchase diapers.

Often alone with her son, Bryanne had nowhere to turn for help—no friends, no family, and no community resources. Doing her best to keep her son clean and dry, she resorted to cutting the insides of her infant son’s used diapers, throwing away the swollen centers, and stuffing them with toilet paper or paper towels. In her video, Bryanne recalls “feelings of inadequacy, stress, fear and shame” when she was unable to provide for her child.

We moms can’t imagine not being able to provide our infant or toddler with a most basic need, a clean diaper. Yet 1 in 3 mothers reports experiencing diaper need—the lack of an adequate supply of diapers to keep a baby clean, dry and healthy.

Our organization, National Diaper Bank Network (NDBN), was created in 2011 to address diaper need and its impact on families. With the support of our founding sponsor Huggies®, NDBN and its 255-plus member diaper bank programs—operating in 45 states, D.C. and Guam—work to raise awareness of diaper need, strengthen the growing number of community-based diaper banks, and distribute nearly 37 million diapers annually to babies in need. While we have achieved much success, the need remains great.

Today, 5.3 million American children under the age of three live in poor and low-income families. Diaper need, an often hidden consequence of poverty, threatens the physical, mental and economic health of babies and their families. Babies left in wet and soiled diapers are likely to get unhealthy rashes and infections. Plus, a growing body of research links such poverty-related maladies to toxic stress, which negatively affects the brain development of children.

A lack of diapers can also keep parents out of the workforce. Most child care providers require parents to leave a daily supply of disposable diapers along with their infant or toddler. Without diapers, some parents cannot go to work or school.

Our own study, published in Pediatrics, found that mothers who cannot provide enough diapers for their babies are more likely to report difficulty with stress management, depression, and coping with trauma. These mental health needs were even more pronounced in mothers who had trouble obtaining diapers than in mothers who reported food insecurity.

On average, diapering a child costs about $18 per week. That is a significant expense for some parents, as it represents more than 6 percent of the gross pay of a minimum-wage worker. But as a social programs go, $18 a week to change a life is an incredible bargain.

Later this month, communities throughout the U.S. will recognize Diaper Need Awareness Week (September 28 – October 4, 2015). In addition to the options at DiaperDrive.org, you can also donate Huggies Rewards points to NDBN, which makes a huge difference. Follow NDBN on Twitter and Facebook and help raise awareness by using #DiaperNeed on your own social media posts to encourage others to support diaper banks—your voice matters!

Moms like Bryanne know that small things can make a huge difference. Today, Bryanne is a successful writer, wife, and the mother of two teenage sons. She is proudly giving voice to #DiaperNeed and working to make sure all babies have access to clean diapers—read Bryanne’s full story.

Inspiring Hope, Health, and Happy Bottoms

by, Summer Hunt

Rachel Alston & her daughter, Ayva (age 2)

“A healthy supply of diapers keeps babies clean and dry, but it also reduces parent stress… diapers help parents be able to further their education, as well as find stable housing and employment.”

“I don’t think I truly understood diaper need until I experienced it myself,” says Rachel Alston. “I’ve also found that most people don’t know that there isn’t government assistance for families needing diapers.” This Portland mom found herself in a tight spot in 2008 when she had her first child, daughter Ayva. While her husband was in school, Rachel was staying at home with the baby. They already received assistance from other programs, but diapers were proving to be a pressing expense. “We were trying to stretch our SNAP benefits to be able to supplement with cash,” she says. “But it just wasn’t enough.”

Unfortunately, Rachel was not able to find a diaper bank in her area. “Eventually we turned to cloth diapering, because we were lucky enough to have a washer and dryer in our unit,” she says. “But I know that some families are just not in that situation, because they’re in transitional housing or possibly even homeless, and most schools and daycares will not accept cloth diapering as an option.” Thinking back on that time in her life, Rachel remembers being so stressed that she couldn’t provide such a basic necessity for her child. “Being a parent is challenging enough without having to count diapers or worry if you’re going to have enough to make it through the week.”

Jan Rhine collected over 3,500 diapers for PDX Diaper Bank by hosting a diaper drive at her place of employment

Determined to help and hopefully decrease the number of moms in her position, Rachel founded PDX Diaper Bank, the first of its kind in Portland. “I knew I wanted to start an organization to help my community to serve mothers and children,” she explains. “After making a few phone calls to other nonprofits in the area to ask about their experience with diaper need, I knew what I needed to do to make the biggest impact.” With a motto of, “inspiring hope, health, and happy bottoms,” The PDX Diaper Bank accepts both disposable and cloth diapers for infants, children and adults, which are distributed to partner agencies and then on to families. PDX Diaper Bank also offers free “Cloth Diapering on a Budget” classes to eligible families.

As the executive director of the PDX Diaper Bank, Rachel meets families from all walks of life who experience the stress and worry that goes along with not being able to provide. “I have seen so many families just trying to cope and survive day-to-day living – overcoming homelessness, securing stable employment, battling health problems… all while trying to raise a child,” she says. “They are true everyday heroes.”

If there was one thing Rachel could communicate to people considering donating to or even starting a diaper drive or bank, it would be that there is such a great need, even if you don’t see it outright. “There aren’t enough diaper banks in the United States to completely close the diaper gap, but that is slowly changing as advocates educate communities about diaper need and the impact it has on families,” she says.

A Diaper Ministry Is Born

As a community outreach coordinator at her church, AWHONN nurse Linda Clark Amankwaa, PhD, MN, BSN, RN, RNC, wanted to do something to make a difference in the lives of folks living in her home area of Tallahassee, FL. “I was responsible for a project, but I wasn’t sure what I could do to make a contribution to the community,” she says.

With more than 35 years in the nursing field, Linda has long been making strides to improve the health of women and babies. After communicating with Brehon, a local organization dedicated to protecting children and nurturing families, she learned that there was a great need for diapers.

“My daughter has two children, and I know how expensive diapers can be, on top of daycare and all the other normal costs,” she explains. “And without enough diapers, babies are exposed to health risks. I knew that diapers were something that would be greatly appreciated and easy to donate.”

With the help of her fellow members at Bethel AME Tallahassee, Linda started their first annual diaper drive in 2012. “We collected more than 2,000 diapers—we were overjoyed at the support for the diaper drive!” she remembers. “It was a huge success, and we knew it would be something we could do every year.”

Bethel AME Church during their Diapers for Babies diaper drive.

Now in its fourth year and going strong, the Bethel AME Church diaper drive has continued its partnership with Brehon and has donated more than 8,000 diapers to date. “It has been such a blessing to watch the diapers pile up,” Linda says. “It’s incredible how something that seems so small, so simple to us can have a such a big impact on families that need the help.”

There are more than 5.3 million babies and toddlers living in
low-income families that are affected by diaper need. Without enough clean, dry diapers, babies are more prone to rashes and infections. Most daycares will not accept children without a sufficient supply of diapers, meaning mom or dad may have to miss out on work (and a paycheck).

Summer Hunt is the editorial coordinator for publications at AWHONN.

You can help reach our 100,000 diaper goal!

Visit DiaperDrive.org to find a local diaper bank in your area, and be sure to report your total donated on the website—just click DONATE DIAPERS to tell us how many and where you donated.

You can also choose to donate dollars that will be used to purchase diapers at wholesale for diaper banks across the country; $1 equals 6 diapers.