The San Diego Food Bank has launched a Diaper Bank to help low-income families that are struggling to make ends meet.
They teamed up with San Diego State Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher for the program.
“Our goal is to lift people out of poverty," said James Floros, President and CEO of the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank.
According to Floros, there are around 467,000 families living in food insecurity in San Diego. The San Diego Food Bank reaches out to approximately 300,000 of those local families each month.
But many low-income families also struggle to provide diapers for babies, which Floros added, can be quite expensive.
Disposable diapers can cost $70 to $80 per month for a baby.
Parents, especially single working mothers, who cannot afford to provide diaper for their babies often have to miss work because daycare's will not accept the child without extra disposable diapers.
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“If you don’t have a clean diaper for your child, you cannot drop your child off at daycare—if you don’t have an adequate supply," Fletcher said.
Fletcher said they heard stories from many parents who were forced to reuse diapers for their babies.
She added that this issue can perpetuate the cycle of poverty.
Employees from San Diego Gas & Electric were the first donations--giving thousands of diapers to the San Diego Food Bank.
“Something as simple as a diaper could make the difference in somebody’s life,” Floros said.
The Diaper Bank Program will provide donated diapers to low-income families with infants and toddlers through the San Diego Food Bank.
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