Mayor Greg Fischer and the Louisville Metro Office of Resilience and Community Services made a donation of more than 500,000 diapers to the St. Bernadette Diaper Bank to distribute to families in need last week.
The diaper bank, started in 2013 by St. Bernadette parishioners Deanna and Chris Hornback, distributes diapers to more than 13 nonprofit agencies in the Louisville area. It is the only diaper bank in Kentucky.
According to a press release from the mayor’s office, diapers for one child cost about $80 per month and one in three families lack adequate resources to buy as many as they need.
In the past two years, diaper costs have reportedly risen nearly 9 percent, due to demand for products, supply-chain disruptions and increased shipping costs, the release said.
RCS was able to purchase the diapers due to a special allocation from federal Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)-CARES funding. The grant also allows RCS to expand programming and services for those financially impacted by the pandemic by increasing utility assistance and other financial aid and case management for houseless individuals, the release said.
Deanna Hornback said during a presentation of the diapers July 7 that roughly 6,000 children are in need of diapers across the city and surrounding counties, which is more than the diaper bank can currently assist.
“Without an adequate supply of diapers, babies are exposed to serious health risks,” said Hornback. “On top of that, babies may not be accepted into daycare without diapers of their own, and that means their caregivers are unable to work.”
The diaper bank aims to provide 50 diapers per month to those 6,000 children.
The release noted that the diaper bank is in constant need of diapers for all ages, but is running low on pull-ups and diapers for newborns and sizes 5 and 6.
The St. Bernadette Diaper Bank accepts donations online at https://stb2008.weshareonline.org/ws/opportunities/DiaperBank and by mail at the St. Bernadette Diaper Bank, 6500 St. Bernadette Ave., Prospect, Ky., 40059. For more information, call 425-2210, ext. 214.
