No Child Wet Behind is kicking off their fifth consecutive year with aspirations to become America’s largest diaper drive. One in three American families reports experiencing diaper need. This staggering fact propelled a local diaper drive into a national movement. This ProDoula founded, nonprofit charity, adopted the month of May as No Child Wet Behind month, thirty-one days devoted to battling Diaper Need. ProDoula encourages their membership of birth workers to embrace No Child Wet Behind as a platform to support families in a charitable way and give to those in need. No Child Wet Behind has become a mantra in the doula community inspiring charity across the continent.
Diaper need is real. Diapers are mandatory. They’re not optional. Without organizations like “No Child Wet Behind” and local diaper drives, babies suffer. Diapers are emptied and put back on… Baby’s bottoms become irritated and they cry in pain. A baby’s incessant crying can easily “push the buttons” of their already stressed out parents and babies can suffer the consequences.
Doulas in over twenty states, coast to coast, partner with local diaper banks and dedicate the month of May to educating their communities, while driving donation numbers. ProDoula doulas, and their agencies, set up diaper donation bins in neighborhood businesses and are hosting successful fundraising events. 5k walk/run and family fun days are scheduled every weekend in participating cities.
2016 saw tens of thousands of dollars in financial donations and over 200,000 diapers, but, Diaper Need reaches so many families that these staggering numbers don’t even put a dent into the diaper needs of our nation. In the true spirit of giving back, community and education, No Child Wet Behind continues to raise awareness about the importance of diaper need to the public. Diaper need affects families in every community.
No Child Wet behind’s beneficiary is the National Diaper Bank Network whose mission is to raise awareness of diaper need, strengthen community-based diaper banks, and generate donations of dollars and diapers, so that all babies remain clean, dry and healthy.
According to the National Diaper Bank Network
- 5.3 million children in the U.S. aged three or younger live in poor or low-income families.
- 1 in 3 American families reports experiencing diaper need.
- Disposable diapers cost $70 to $80 per month per baby.
- No state or federal child safety-net program allocates dollars specifically for the purchase of diapers.
- Diapers cannot be obtained with food stamps.
- Infants require up to 12 diapers per day, toddlers about
- Babies who remain too long in a soiled diaper are exposed to potential health risks.
- Most childcare centers, even free and subsidized facilities require parents to provide a day’s supply of disposable diapers.
- Cloth diapers are not accepted at the vast majority of child care centers. Many parents cannot go to work or school if they can’t leave their babies at child care.
HOW TO HELP:
- Donate diapers to a diaper drive near you, or organize one in your own community!
- Donate diapers to a local women’s or low-income children’s center.
- Donate cash to No Child Wet Behind or similar organization.