A few months ago, I was introduced to an organization called Help a Mother Out by my friend Whitney of Rookie Moms. The mission of Help a Mother Out (or HAMO for those of us who are lazy typists) is to provide diapers to parents in need.

Did you know:

• Government assistance programs like WIC and food stamps cannot be used to buy diapers?
• Most food banks do not stock diapers?
• Diaper companies do not typically make charitable donations of diapers to families in need or organizations that support those families?

This information sheet from the HAMO site breaks down the facts surrounding diapers and poverty even further.

Ever since I first read about this and really started to think about what it meant, I have not been able to get this out of my head. Homelessness or poverty forces some moms to regularly make a choice between buying diapers to keep their children clean, buying food to keep their children fed, or paying to keep a roof over their heads. Now, every time I’m changing Augie and I reach for a diaper, I think about those moms and feel lucky to have a drawer full of Huggies to wrap around his chubby little tushie.

So what am I going to do to help these moms?

I’m going to hold a diaper drive!

My goal is to collect enough diapers to donate 1000 to Help a Mother Out. Would you like to help? Here’s how:

If You’re Local

I’ve put a donation box on my front porch to collect diapering supplies. Take a look around your house and see if you can dig up that half bag of diapers that your baby grew out of and bring it by. Or maybe your kid is completely potty-trained now (lucky you!) and you still have some Pull-ups around. Wouldn’t it be nice to clear out that closet space and help someone who could use them? Or maybe you’re feeling really generous and you could pick up a second box of diapers or wipes when you’re getting your usual supplies at Target or Costco. Really anything you can give would be fantastic! You can drop off:

• Diapers (sizes 3-6 especially, but all sizes welcome)*
• Pull-ups*
• Baby wipes (UNOPENED)
• New socks & new underwear for women and children

*Open packs of diapers are great, but please keep in original packaging or ziploc bag.

If you need my address, send me an email at daisy [at] wendolonia.com. The box will be there for two weeks from November 1-14.

If You’re Not Local

If you’d like to help out but it’s not really practical to jump on a plane with a box of diapers, I’ve set up a Pay Pal account to take donations. I will take every single cent that’s donated over to Target (or wherever I can find the best deal) and buy as many diapers and wipes as I have money for. (If I need a little extra to cover a box, I’ll  pay for it out of my own pocket.) Any little bit you can give will help. Bargain diapers are about $0.20 a piece so even a donation of $5.00 will buy 25 diapers.  $40 will buy the big box of 200 diapers!

Thanks so much for any help you can give! Let’s get these babies’ butts covered and keep them dry!