It launched last year with a goal of making sure every family has enough diapers to keep their children dry and healthy.

For millions of families, keeping a baby in clean diapers is a daily struggle.

A new nonprofit is working to change that for Stark County families.

The Stark County Diaper Bank launched last year with a goal of making sure every family has enough diapers to keep their children clean, dry and healthy. As of September, the agency has distributed 37,000 diapers through partner agencies.

It all started with a question.

Barb Weaver, owner of Once Upon a Child in Jackson Township, was at a conference when she struck up a conversation with a franchise owner in Cincinnati. The colleague mentioned that her store worked with an area diaper bank.

“I knew I needed to be involved in the one in my area,” Weaver said.

But she couldn’t find any information on such an organization in Stark County. So she asked her friend Shannon Hexamer what she knew.

“I took that as an opportunity to start asking questions,” said Hexamer, board chair of the diaper bank and owner of Shannon English marketing.

While some organizations, including Catholic Charities, distributed diapers to some families, Stark County didn’t have a dedicated diaper bank.

Hexamer set out to change that by gathering representatives from area organizations. They did a feasibility study, collected research and had plenty of discussions.

By December, the Diaper Bank had a board and nonprofit status. The first drive in January brought in 6,000 donated diapers.

This week (Monday through Sept. 29) is National Diaper Awareness Week so the organization will have donation bins at every Stark Library location. Folks can donate clean, disposable diapers in any brand or size. Open packages, regardless of how many are left, are accepted.

"Every diaper matters," Weaver said.

Diaper Need

In Ohio, diapers are taxed. Families can’t use state or federal safety-net programs, including food stamps or WIC, to purchase them.

Babies go through an average of six to eight diapers a day. Families can spend more than $80 a month -- that adds up to about $2,200 spent on diapers by the time a baby is 2 ½, according to data from the Diaper Bank.

For working, lower-income families already struggling to make ends meet, keeping a baby in diapers can be a daily struggle, Hexamer said.

“Babies aren’t getting changed enough. They’re having health issues,” she said. “The situation at home may be difficult.”

Weaver, who is also board secretary, witnessed some of her customers struggling and sometimes reusing diapers or going longer between changes.

She now has a dedicated donation bin at her store.

“We want to help make things better, easier and more available,” she said.

Cloth diapers aren't an option for many families. They have a high up-front cost, plus families may not have access to at-home laundry and diapers are often banned from laundromats, Weaver said.

"It seems obvious but it's not," she said.

Distribution

In addition to diaper drives, Hexamer scours stores and clips coupons to find the best deals. Twice a month, teams of volunteers work out of a borrowed space at the Stark County Hunger Task Force offices to sort donations by size, take apart packages and re-wrap diapers in packs of 25.

The Diaper Bank doesn't distribute diapers directly. Instead, they work through five partner agencies already providing services to families in Stark County: Catholic Charities, North Canton Church of Christ and the Salvation Army citadels in Alliance, Canton and Massillon.

Families can receive 50 diapers a month -- two packs of 25 -- per child. Each agency has its own method of distribution.

“As a recipient agency, we’re just very grateful and blessed for the opportunity," said Heather Weaver, site and programs manager for Catholic Charities and vice chair of the Diaper Bank board.

The agency was already distributing diapers to families when it became involved in the Diaper Bank. The bank has allowed the group to double the amount of people receiving that assistance.

"Partnering with the diaper bank has allowed us to do away with some of our limitations and be able to serve people more frequently with more diapers," she said.

Families are making really hard decisions, like having to choose between keeping the lights on or keeping the baby in diapers, said Capt. Dorothy Budd of the Salvation Army of Alliance.

"This has been a great stress relief to them," she said.

The Diaper Bank is working to reach more families.

"We’re little by little getting the word out. Hopefully we can grow our number of partners and more people can be able to access (diapers)," Barb Weaver said.

Hexamer plans to speak to lawmakers about removing the tax on diapers in Ohio.

And she sees a bright future for the organization. Its plans could include working with local hospitals to help families from birth, expanding reach into neighboring Carroll and Tuscarawas counties, or expanding products to include period supplies or adult diapers.

"I don’t know what God will lead us to, but we’ll try to fit the needs that we can," she said.

For more information, including how to access diapers or how to help, see starkcountydiaperbank.org.

Reach Jessica at 330-580-8322 or jessica.holbrook@cantonrep.com

On Twitter: @jholbrookREP.





