MILWAUKEE — This week is National Diaper Need Awareness Week. The inability to provide diapers is a silent struggle in the U.S.
Meagan Johnson is the Founder and Executive Director of the Milwaukee Diaper Mission. She started the organization during the pandemic and for the past three years has distributed over one million diapers into our community.
"So we know that 1 in 2 families in the United States with small children struggle to afford diapers. That's a new study that was just released and our job as Milwaukee's Diaper Bank is to address that issue heads on," said Johnson. "The pandemic, inflation, there are a lot of different reasons that diaper need has skyrocketed for the United States and our communities specifically."
This stack of diapers gives you an idea of just how many diapers a family with one child will go through in a year. To help offset that cost, the Milwaukee Diaper Mission is teaming up with the Medical College of Wisconsin for a 12-hour diaper drive. The goal is to collect 10 thousand diapers!
Justine Bales serves on the Neurosurgery Jedi Committee at the Medical College of Wisconsin. "With this partnership, we can help prevent health issues that arise from being locked in a dirty diaper for too long, such as urinary tract infections and severe diaper rash," said Bales.
A very popular couple in Milwaukee understands that and helps spread awareness and collect diapers. Bucks star Giannis Antetokounmpo and his fiancé Moriah, who is a member of the Milwaukee Diaper Mission's Board.
"As a father of now three little ones, most of them in diapers still, they understand how much diapers cost, they understand that a lot of families in our city are struggling having to decide between diapers and food on a weekly basis," said Johnson.
"Just gives you a platform to do something good and be able to give back especially for me in a community that helped me," said Antetokounmpo.
All of us coming together to help babies is a win-win for families in Wisconsin.
The Diaper Drive is Wednesday, September 20th from 6:30 am-6:30 pm at the Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 W. Watertown Plank Road. They'll be collecting those diapers in front of the Medical College's Education Building, and you can just follow the signs, pull up, and donate.
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