By Gloria Stravelli
RED BANK – One in three local families struggles to afford diapers for a child, according to the Red Bank Rotary Club, which has launched an initiative to provide easily accessible “pantries” stocked with free diapers and other supplies new parents need.
The Rotary’s three freestanding, colorful Mother’s Pantries stock a supply of diapers and baby wipes as well as infant formula, feminine hygiene products and more. They are accessible 24/7 for anyone in need.
The pantries provide a short-term supply of these basic items, some of which are not funded by formal support systems like the government-funded WIC or food stamps programs.
Mothers Pantries are located in the borough outside Lunch Break’s main entrance at 121 Drs. James Parker Blvd., by the Salvation Army Red Bank Corps at 180 Newman Springs Road, and at the Red Bank Family YMCA, 166 Maple Ave.
The Rotary Club and the organizations fill the pantries as needed, but donations by members of the community also keep them stocked; just hours after the first pantry was installed on the grounds of the YMCA, Katie McAdoo, president-elect of the Red Bank Rotary Club and former executive director of the Red Bank Y, noticed donated items had already been added.
“I saw it going up, went into office the next morning and went to check it out and there were already items in it from the community,” she said. “A couple of cans of formula, a parenting book. It felt so good, without any publicity, it was a concept that could be easily understood.
“It fills a need,” said McAdoo, who retired from the YMCA in August.
“People don’t know, with all the regulations and restrictions sometimes with government programs, it’s difficult for families to afford diapers, wipes, tampons. These are human basic needs,” she explained.
During her tenure at the Y, McAdoo said they were “aware of so many gaps for people who live in underserved communities.”
“With programs like this, and an awareness of the gap and of the need, we might be able to be changemakers as well” as providers, she said.
Funding for the project includes a $2,000 grant from Rotary District 7505 and another $2,000 from the Red Bank Rotary Club. The matching grants made it possible to purchase the pantry structures and an initial supply of items.
“What happens is the Rotary Club district which we’re part of, there are funds available from many grants and the club needs to match that,” said McAdoo. “So we were talking as a group about applying for a grant for a mini-project and this came to mind. And we wrote the grant and were given the funds.”
McAdoo has been working on the pantry project with Jay Schwartz, former Rotary Club president.
In addition to the three pantries already operating, the Rotary has been approached by Pilgrim Baptist Church to place one on church property, McAdoo said.
“This program is unique to my knowledge,” she said and noted that the pantries are easily accessible and no appointment is necessary to use them.
“We’ve seen good use of the pantries, seen people filling them, dropping things off,” she said. “We still have some funding available for supplies” if any of the pantries run out. McAdoo said they will buy a large box of diapers or other supplies and break it down into smaller packs to fill the pantries, noting that the program is about helping families in an “emergency.”
“It’s not meant to sustain families but just to give them a break,” she said.
The Rotary Club is known for giving scholarships to students for educational purposes, noted Schwartz, but, after seeing food and other “pantries” popping up during the pandemic, McAdoo approached Schwartz with the Mother’s Pantry concept.
Schwartz thought it was a “great idea.”
A fourth-generation Rotarian, Schwartz said he was able to complete the grant application by pointing out the pantries would be available at times when nonprofits would not be and explained how the pantries would benefit the community.
“I talked about how it would benefit everybody. It could become self-sustainable. We talked to a bunch of charities that said they had tons of people that need diapers,” Schwartz said, noting that the pantries are a way to help families during those times when other options are not available, like on the weekend or in the middle of the night.
He said all three organizations that currently sponsor pantries on their sites were enthusiastic about supporting the project.
“COVID hit a lot of people very hard. We heard stories about people reusing diapers. We don’t want to see that,” Schwartz said. He sees the pantries as continuing for many years.
“The theme for Rotary International this year is ‘Empowering Women and Girls’ and, of course, education is important, lobbying for a living wage is important,” McAdoo said. “But, gosh, if you can’t put diapers on your baby how can you go out and work and be empowered?”
The article originally appeared in the November 18 – 24, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
