UPDATE: In order to ensure there is an adequate supply of diapers to help community families in need, the opening date for the Manchester Diaper Pantry has been rescheduled to Saturday, October 5 from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. at MakeOver Ministry.
MANCHESTER, NH – A resolution declaring the week of September 23-29, 2019 to be “Diaper Need Awareness Week” in the City of Manchester was signed Sept. 9, kicking off an effort to reduce the burden on struggling families for the cost of diapers.
In New Hampshire, a family spends more than $80 a month to buy diapers for their child. New Hampshire children under the age of 5 on federal food assistance exceeds the national average. In NH, 76 percent of working mothers have infants in diapers. Nationally, a parent misses work an average of four days per month due to a lack of diapers.
To combat this issue, Amoskeag Health and the Makeover Ministry have worked together to create a community-based Diaper Drive to help start the first Manchester Diaper Pantry. Donations of diapers or funds will benefit families in need who are referred by a community agency to the Makeover Ministry on 40 Ronald Road, Manchester.
“I have the privilege of working with pregnant women every day,” says Gabi Teed, Amoskeag Health’s Perinatal SUD Care Coordinator. “In Manchester and across the country, families are struggling to make ends meet and having enough money to buy diapers. When there’s a lack of diapers, babies can’t go to daycare, may end up with infections, parents miss work, it’s a vicious cycle. We want to help end that cycle.”
The grand opening of the Manchester Diaper Pantry will be Oct. 5, 2019, from 9 a.m.-12 p.m. and is open to the public. The Diaper Drive will continue through September 30.
Financial contributions may be made online or mailed to Amoskeag Health, 145 Hollis Street, Manchester, NH 03101.
The following collection sites are currently accepting diaper donations:
- Amoskeag Health, 1245 Elm Street, Manchester
- Amoskeag Health, 145 Hollis Street, Manchester
- Greater Manchester Chamber, 54 Hanover Street, Manchester
- Bedford Commons OB-GYN P.A., 201 Riverway Place, Bedford
- Hannaford, 140 Bicentennial Drive, Hooksett
- Cowabunga’s, 1328 Hooksett Road, Hooksett
- Market Basket, 420 Elm Street, Manchester
- Quirk Quirk Kia, 1300 S Porter St, Manchester
- Quirk Chevrolet, 1250 S Willow St, Manchester
- Quirk VW, 1100 S Willow St, Manchester
Amoskeag Health is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) federally qualified health center offering high-quality, comprehensive, and family-oriented primary health care and support services since 1993. Founded in 1980, Amoskeag Health Pediatrics, formerly Child Health Services, is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of at-risk children. Through all its programs, Amoskeag Health serves over 18,000 active patients at four locations in Manchester. For more information visit www.amoskeaghealth.org
