Last year, thanks to Nebraska Diaper Bank, over 3.4 million diapers were given out to help care for babies in Nebraska. Since its inception, Nebraska Diaper Bank has given out more than 9 million diapers!
Tegan Reed, one of the co-founders of Nebraska Diaper Bank, said it all began as a small food pantry started by two local churches back in 2014. In those days, they “gave out diapers in addition to food.” By 2018, they were giving out 54,000 diapers along with food items.
In 2022, Tegan realized it was time to purely focus on diaper need. The nonprofit decided to rebrand to fully encompass this new mission. Thus, Nebraska Diaper Bank was established…and 1.3 million diapers were given out that year alone.
More Focused, More Visibility in the Community
Refocusing to “diapers only” allowed for a very clear vision, and easy brand recognition in the community. As Tegan stated, “People know what we do. It allowed us to just get out into the community better.”
There is such a strong need for diaper donations. According to Tegan, “one in three families struggle to afford enough clean diapers for their babies to keep them happy, healthy, clean, and safe.” Tegan said there were times they would have families wrapped around the block waiting in line just to get diapers, often skipping the food. She said people just don’t realize what a need it truly is, and the impact it has on families.
Strong Partnerships
It is largely because of strong partnerships that Nebraska Diaper Bank has been able to do what they do. According to Tegan, they have 36 partners in 71 locations. “Our whole model is working with other people,” stated Tegan. “We really wouldn’t be able to do what we do without these partners.”
Some of their partnerships include Heartland Hope Mission, Together Inc., and A Mother’s Love, which is doula and childbirth services and education classes for families. For their partners, giving out diapers is an “add-on” to something else the non-profits are already doing.
Volunteer Impact
In addition to strong partnerships, volunteers make a huge impact on the organization. Nebraska Diaper Bank has about 350 volunteers a month. These volunteers create a sort of “assembly line” and repackage diapers into uniform bundles to give to each family.
Tegan stated a lot of volunteers come from corporations and that it is a great team-building activity. “They get to chat while they do it and just build up that relationship, so corporations love it.”
Some volunteers love what they do so much, they come back every single week to volunteer.
Dreams for the Future
Currently Nebraska Diaper Bank does a lot of their work in Omaha, Lincoln, Kearney, Norfolk, Scottsbluff and Northeast Nebraska. The goal is to work their way through every county in Nebraska someday.
What is Tegan’s dream? “I would love in five years to be able to say we touched a handful of babies, at least, in every county.”
A Favorite Moment
Tegan shared a memory about a young girl about eight years old that ran up to her, threw her arms around her and said, “thank you so much for helping my family and for providing diapers for my baby sister.” Tegan explained, “for that young girl, it was about her sister not crying as much because she has enough diaper changes. She can probably do her homework a little bit easier.”
Diapers are a basic need for families in the U.S.; as essential to their health and well-being as shelter and clothing. If you’d like to know more about the Nebraska Diaper Bank or how you can volunteer, visit NebraskaDiaperBank.org or contact them at [email protected].
