Indiana Diaper Bank

Rachael Suskovich, our founder, had two young children who were both in diapers when she started working to develop Indiana Diaper Bank. Rachael felt lucky to be able to meet her children’s requirements, but diapers were often on their list of things to buy. They spent at least $50 each time they went shopping for diapering necessities because it was a resource they couldn’t live without.

Rachael often considered impoverished households and pondered how they managed with their meager means. She was aware that the expense of changing diapers had to be a financial strain for a family living paycheck to paycheck. She then began conversing with local authorities and asking them what services families most urgently required. It continued coming up with diapers.

She had heard tales of parents who were having a hard time, just using one diaper per day, or attempting to wash and reuse disposable diapers. She discovered that the lack of access to clean diapers is associated with maternal sadness, newborn health issues, and can hinder a child’s ability to access early learning. The most unexpected thing she discovered was that diapers are not covered by public assistance programs like Medicare, WIC, and SNAP (food stamps).

In order to alleviate Indiana’s diaper needs and increase state-wide awareness of the diaper gap, the Indiana Diaper Bank was established in October 2017.