A Charleston woman has gathered more than 60,000 diapers to give away to families in need.
Ellen Johnstone started Diaper Drop Charities after she realized diapers are not covered by the Women, Infants and Children program or other social programs for people in need.
"[Low-income] families cannot get diapers for their children," Johnstone said Monday at the offices of the Johnstone & Gabhart law firm, where boxes of diapers were being delivered. "They leave their child in a diaper for too long. They will try to air dry a diaper and put it back on a child."
In addition to potential medical problems, parents who are unable to provide fresh diapers for their children aren't able to enroll their child in daycare, Johnstone said. In turn, the child misses out on social enrichment and the parent may have to miss work and fail to provide for the family.
After Johnstone put out a letter to family and friends, diaper donations started pouring in. She received 5,000 physical diaper donations and ordered 60,000 more diapers with the monetary donations she received.
Johnstone has always wanted to help, but after having two children, finding a worthy cause became even more important to her.
"Diapers sounded boring at first. It's very basic, there's nothing glamorous about it," Johnstone said. "But once I realized there is no social program that helped to fund diapers, that's when it all came together and I knew this is what I have to do."
Johnstone has paired with Covenant House and the Charleston YWCA to distribute the diapers to families who need them.
Diaper donations are generally overlooked when people think of ways to donate, Johnstone said.
YWCA and Covenant House employees told Johnstone that diapers are something people ask for every day.
"It's a need they struggle to make because diapers are expensive. It is something people don't think to donate," she said.
Diaper Drop Charities is an official 501(c)3 organization. With Johnstone running the organization, there aren't any expenses or administrative costs, so 100 percent of donations go to charity, according to Johnstone.
"As excited as I am for how many diapers we have here today, I'm really excited for what the future holds for Diaper Drop and for the community," Johnstone said.
Ellen Allen, executive director of Covenant House, described Diaper Drop Charities as "life-changing" for many families in Charleston.
"I think it's one of the most critical needs that's overlooked," Allen said. "It can also keep young mothers out of the workforce, because you have to drop off a day's worth of diapers when you go to daycare."
Deb Weinstein, executive director of the YWCA, said this diaper donation will allow the organization to ask donors for other items now that their diaper needs are met, giving them one less thing to worry about.
Both Weinstein and Allen agreed that diaper shortage is a problem and celebrated working together to meet the needs of community members.
"What Ellen (Johnstone) shared with you about people reusing diapers is real. It's done out of desperation. People do not do this out of choice, they do it out of desperation and children are sick because of it," Weinstein said. "This is a tremendous gift that Ellen Johnstone has created for the community and done for the community."
This is the first year for Diaper Drop Charities. Johnstone hopes the organization grows and helps even more people in need.
Diaper donations can be dropped off at the Johnstone & Gabhart offices at 1125 Virginia St. E., Charleston, WV 25301. Monetary donations can be mailed to PO Box 385, Charleston, WV 25321.
Reach Laura Haight at laura.haight@wvgazettemail.com, 304-348-4833 or follow @laurahaight_ on Twitter.