An interview with The Diaper Bank founder Joanne Goldblum

Hey, remember when I went to Utah? One of the many privileges I had while I was there (in addition to good hair days, of which I had FIVE – an amount equal to the number of days I was THERE, and which has pretty much never happened in the ENTIRE HISTORY OF THE WORLD) was the opportunity to hang out with Joanne Goldblum and her awesome family. Not only is Joanne brilliant and kind and hilarious, she's also a freaking Diaper Warrior (I'm going to have to make her a cape with that emblazoned on the back), and she's as driven as she is compassionate.

Joanne was a social worker in Connecticut (New Haven, actually – you probably recognize it as the home of prestigious Yale University) working with families living in poverty when she realized that very few of the families she interacted with had access to hygiene essentials. Things like toilet paper and soap weren't covered by social programs; according to a Time Magazine piece that was published about her in 2009, she saw a mother take a diaper off her child, “empty the solids, and put it back on.” A lightbulb went on in her head and she decided to take on the challenge of providing fresh, clean diapers to babies in need in her community. Joanne started one of the country's first diaper banks, called (cleverly, she'll tell you), The Diaper Bank, and since then, has given away more than 200,000 diapers a month to families in need. I told you! DIAPER WARRIOR.

I asked Joanne to answer a few questions for me about diaper need in America – she was generous enough to do that for me, and I think her answers are absolutely brilliant. She's incredibly educated about this subject and her answers will really make you think and will open your eyes to things you may never have considered.

First of all, can you clear up some misconceptions about people living at or below the poverty line? Please remind us that they're not all drug abusers and alcoholics. What kinds of people require federal assistance, like welfare and food stamps?

Joanne: Many different kinds of people get food stamps and TANF (temporary assistance for needy families). Many working people get food stamps. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour. That is $15,080 annually - can you imagine living on that? To qualify for food stamps you can make as much as $19,020 (for a family of three - the amounts change based on number of people in family, and there is some change state to state). Many families need to receive TANF because the work they have does not allow the family to live above the poverty level. Often people do not work because of childcare issues, because of health issues and/or because they have to take care of a sick relative, not at all because they are lazy or using drugs. I think it's really important to remember people want the best for their children; parents do all they can to provide for their children. TANF and food stamps are part of our nation's safety net - we need to provide a net so those families truly in need do not fall through the cracks.

So there is no federal assistance for hygiene items like soap, toilet paper or diapers, even if you qualify for food stamps or the WIC program. How do families living in poverty manage without these items? What are some of the direct effects on children?

Joanne: The short answer is that they do without. Often a child spends a whole day or longer in one diaper. The children may be dirty because they have no soap or shampoo; clothing may be dirty because they have no access to laundry. Often poor children have problems with oral health because they do not have toothpaste and toothbrushes.

How does access to clean, fresh diapers improve the quality of life for these families?

Joanne: Inadequate diaper changing increases the risk of numerous health problems, including diaper rash, and may be linked to an increased rate of hepatitis. Low-income parents cannot take advantage of free or subsidized childcare if they cannot afford to leave disposable diapers at the childcare centers. An unfortunate consequence of an inadequate supply of diapers is work and school truancy among the caregivers.

A baby crying from being in a soiled diaper for a prolonged period of time may be at a greater risk of physical abuse by the caregiver, as recognized in studies of patterns of abuse among low-income families.

Why did you decide to start The Diaper Bank? Was there one experience in particular that pushed you over the edge and into action?

Joanne: I started the Diaper Bank while I was a social worker at Yale Child Study Center Family Support Services working with homeless families in New Haven [Connecticut]. Some of you may be familiar with Yale Child Study Center, a branch of Yale University that is world famous for its breakthrough research on behalf of the physical and mental well-being of children. Family Support Services, where I worked, was the community outreach arm of the Child Study Center. I liked working at the Child Study Center because we were very research driven, always monitoring the concrete effects of our efforts on the children we were serving.

As part of my work, I spent a lot of time in the homes of families that were recently homeless or about to lose their homes. I saw families living in abject poverty less than a mile from where I live. I saw children who did not go to school because their parents could not do everything necessary to make their homes work and get them to school every day.

This seems unbelievable at first, but when you think about all the little things that have to fall into place to make a mom’s day work, it’s not so unbelievable. We all know how hard it is to raise children, even for those of us who have everything we need. It is hard and we don’t always do everything we should.

Even with our own car and enough gas, our kids are sometimes late to school. We have all had that thing happen where the power goes out randomly in the middle of the night and our alarm clock doesn’t go off. But it’s no big deal for me. I call the school, say my kids will be late and drive them. Now what if the school bus were my only option and because of the dumb power going out (which, by the way, happens a lot in the kind of houses where low-income people live), my child missed the bus?

Now she can’t get to school. And what if I have no phone to call and explain what happened? What will the teachers and principal think of me and of my child? And what if I have no food in the house and my child depends on school for breakfast and lunch?

So a small thing like a momentary power outage leads to a big thing like my kids not eating today or getting suspended from school. My work with these families taught me the same lesson again and again: for people struggling with poverty, small things affect big things. And the small thing I fixated on was diapers. I saw all these families who did not have enough diapers; who were emptying out disposable diapers to reuse them again and again. And I realized that these small diapers were affecting big things like education, jobs, and child welfare.

What is the first step you would suggest someone take if they want to help moms struggling with diaper need?

Joanne: Donate diapers to a local diaper bank, Head Start program, or food pantry. If you want to find one in your area, go to the Huggies Diaper Bank Finder. You can also donate to The Diaper Bank (www.thediaperbank.org).

(Thank you, Joanne!)

Disclosure: I have partnered with the Huggies® brand to help promote the Huggies® Every Little Bottom program. I have been compensated for my time commitment to the program, which includes writing about it here. However, my opinions are entirely my own.

Comments

[HereWeGoAJen]

Great interview! That is a wonderful program that is very needed.

[Life of a Doctor's Wife]

What a fantastic interview. So illuminating about how something so small can make such a big difference.

[A'Dell]

The part about how children that are forced to stay in soiled diapers for long periods of time are more at risk to physical abuse was really, really difficult to read. I just...over a diaper? As a trigger point? Oh, no. No, no, no, no.

I actually have two boxes of diapers in my dining room right now, just waiting to be donated. I still need to find the right place to take them, and then repeat the act, but, yes.

Thanks for bringing this topic forward. I think it's something a lot of people would rather just not hear about, because it really is awful on several levels.

[Ugg Outlet]

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