One Way Every Day: February 24 - The Detroit Area Diaper Bank

Today's post highlights another inspiring individual who has taken it upon themselves to change the world...at least her little corner of it! I've said it over and over again. FIND A NEED...AND FILL IT! I want to spark a little change, to inspire others to make a difference by highlighting ordinary (extraordinary) people and how they have taken a need and created a solution.

Marybeth Levine had a goal - TO CHANGE THE WORLD! She became disillusioned while working as a Congressional assistant and lobbyist and she left Washington D.C., she now calls Canton, MI home. Marybeth Levine is still out TO CHANGE THE WORLD - one diaper at a time! Marybeth is the unpaid executive director of the Detroit Area Diaper Bank- a charity she started out of her home.

The mission of the Detroit Area Diaper Bank is to help meet the unmet need for diapers in the community's most vulnerable populations -- babies from low-income households, the elderly and people with disabilities. There is no assistance for diapers, they're not paid for or provided by WIC, Food Stamps or Medicare. Diapers are a huge hole in the "safety net."

People and families who need diapers most likely need other social services as well. Instead of creating a separate social service delivery system, the Diaper Bank partners with other nonprofits who are already qualifying people for need and working with them toward "whole" solutions. We partner with family services agencies, homeless shelters, crisis nurseries, domestic abuse shelters, food pantries, senior agencies, faith-based organizations, disability networks and state human services agencies -- we become their diaper resource, increasing their capacity to more fully support individuals and families in need.

Since April 2009, the Detroit Area Diaper Bank has donated over 375,000 diapers to 45 organizations that help jobless, single mothers, struggling families and disabled and elderly people, who have become incontinent. Please consider what you are able to do to assist DADB and Marybeth in their mission to CHANGE THE WORLD, one diaper at a time.

Facts about Diaper Need:

Babies-

A healthy change of diapers for the average infant is up to 12 per day, a toddler up to 8 per day. But in low-income households,a baby may be in a single diaper all day or longer risking health problems ranging from severe diaper rash to staph infection.
Uncomfortable babies cry and don't sleep well at night -- this leads to poorly-rested and higher-stressed parents and siblings and can contribute to illnesses, absences and reduced performance levels at work and school. A baby crying non-stop from being in a soiled diaper for a prolonged period of time or suffering from a severe diaper rash is more susceptible to abuse, especially in an already-stressed household.
In low-income families without insurance, health issues like severe diaper rashes often go untreated until they require a trip to the ER, creating added pressure on community hospitals that provide free emergency care.

The Elderly -

15-20% of all adults over age 65 suffer some degree of incontinence.
Elder abuse is more likely in a multi-generational household facing the added stress of incontinence.
Healthy but incontinent seniors often become homebound if they can't afford supplies. This can lead to isolation, depression and increased need for assistance programs like Meals on Wheels.
Incontinence is among the most common reasons for seniors to be put in nursing homes

Get Involved:

Donate to the Detroit Area Diaper Bank.

Host a Diaper Drive to benefit the Detroit Area Diaper Bank.

Other ways you can help DADB.