News & Events
Governor Stein Proclaims Menstrual Products Access Awareness Week
Governor Stein Proclaims Menstrual Products Access Awareness Week
Menstrual Products Access Awareness Week
2026
By The Governor Of The State Of North Carolina
A Proclamation
Whereas, period supplies are a necessary product for millions of women and girls across the country; and
Whereas, national surveys and research studies report that one in four women struggle to secure period supplies to meet their monthly needs due to a lack of income; and
Whereas, this lack of period supplies, known as period poverty, can adversely affect women’s health and well-being; and
Whereas, this lack of access exacerbates the vicious cycle of poverty by forcing one in five women to withdraw from daily life, losing pay or missing educational opportunities because of menstruation; and
Whereas, the people of North Carolina recognize that this is a public health issue, and addressing it can lead to economic opportunity for North Carolina’s people and surrounding communities and improved health for women and girls, thus ensuring all people have access to the basic necessities required to thrive and reach their full potential; and
News Release: Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® Mid-Atlantic Region Conducts Largest Drive To Date For Diaper Bank Of North Carolina’s Period Power Project
NEWS RELEASE
Organization Donates More Than 210,000 Items For Community Service Project During 73rd Regional Conference Held in March in Raleigh
RALEIGH, N.C.— Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated® – the oldest service organization founded by college-educated African American women in 1908– Mid-Atlantic Region announced that members collected a record number of donations supporting the Diaper Bank of North Carolina’s Period Power Project and the sorority’s “We Are Legendary Period!” community outreach initiative. The initiative was part of the Region’s 73rd Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference, held in Raleigh on March 19-22, 2026.
According to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina, Alpha Kappa Alpha conducted the largest drive for the organization’s Period Power Project to date, by providing 210,172 items. This total includes menstrual hygiene items, such as 68,442 pads, 47,319 tampons, 19,501 hygiene supplies and 8,468 adult supplies, as well as 64,832 liners, 348 clothing items. Members also provide 1,148 baby supplies and 114 other hygiene items to support the Diaper Bank of North Carolina.
“This was an extraordinary act of community leadership. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.® has set a powerful example of what it looks like to show up with purpose and compassion,” said Michelle Schaefer, CEO and Founder of the Diaper Bank of North Carolina. “This is one of the most impactful Period Power drives we have seen, and it will directly help ensure that individuals across North Carolina have access to the basic essentials they need to live with dignity. We are deeply grateful for their partnership and commitment to this work.”
The Diaper Bank of North Carolina is addressing period poverty in North Carolina through its Period Power initiative. The project supplies over 1,000 public schools at the elementary, middle and high school levels with pads, tampons, black leggings and underwear so that young menstruating individuals can focus on their learning instead of their basic hygiene.
“Alpha Kappa Alpha women continue to demonstrate extraordinary generosity, and our overwhelming support of the Diaper Bank’s Period Power Project reflects the very essence of who we are,” said Nadine Vargas Stewart, Mid-Atlantic Regional Director, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. “Ensuring that individuals have access to essential menstrual care is deeply connected to our mission of service to all mankind, and our members showed up with purpose and compassion. We are profoundly grateful to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina for partnering with us on this critical initiative and for their unwavering commitment to preserving dignity for those they serve,” said Vargas Stewart.
NC food banks distribute groceries to TSA agents
Even though Transportation Security Administration agents are starting to get paychecks again, one union official pointed out their household bills have piled up, so North Carolina food banks are helping to ease the effects of the partial government shutdown.
Big News Network- Zamone Perez - 6th April 2026
Even though Transportation Security Administration agents are starting to get paychecks again, one union official pointed out their household bills have piled up, so North Carolina food banks are helping to ease the effects of the partial government shutdown.
TSA employees had indirectly fallen victim to the congressional impasse over funding for ICE and Border Patrol in the Department of Homeland Security budget. Paychecks started arriving again on March 30, after President Donald Trump signed an executive order.
Mac Johnson, president of the American Federation of Government Employees Local 0449, which represents TSA employees at Raleigh-Durham International Airport, said agents still are not yet on firm financial footing.
"They still have to catch up on their bills," Johnson pointed out. "I anticipate within a week or two that all of those funds will be exhausted, catching up on overdue bills."
To support TSA agents, the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority partnered with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina and the Diaper Bank of North Carolina. The groups hosted a food and supply drive for TSA agents, most of whom have kept showing up for work during the shutdown.
All Things Leland- Diaper Bank of North CarolinaCommunity Conversation with the Founder and CEO of the Diaper Bank - Michelle Schaefer and Julie Bowling (Lower Cape Fear Branch of the Diaper Bank)
Having a child at home with severe diaper rash, DiaperBank founder Michelle Schaefer was changing his diaper 20 – 30 times a day, she could not stop the infections from taking over, causing her son to be extremely ill and in pain. As her son started to heal, Michelle started to wonder about parents who were not able to grab that next diaper to help their babies stay clean, dry, and healthy and knew there was no assistance for these families to do so.
In January 2013, Schaefer formed the Diaper Bank of NC with the hopes of providing 50,000 diapers in her community within the year. The Diaper Bank now distributes over 7.5 million diapers a year state-wide, with branches in the Triangle, Charlotte, Greater Triad, and Lower Cape Fear Region.
To learn more about the Diaper Bank we are pleased to have a conversation with Michelle and Julie Bowling (Lower Cape Fear Branch of the Diaper Bank).
New Legislation Would Help Military Families Struggling with Diaper Costs
Two lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a new bipartisan bill that would help military families with children and on tight budgets to purchase and gain better access to diapers and supplies.
Two lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a new bipartisan bill that would help military families with children and on tight budgets to purchase and gain better access to diapers and supplies.
Reps. Valerie Foushee (D-NC) and Ryan Mackenzie (R-PA) on Tuesday introduced the Military Family Diaper Partnership Act which would establish what they call a Military Family Diaper Fund to support military families and children of servicemembers by providing reliable access to diapers and related supplies.
The legislation follows the pair’s previously introduced legislation in November 2025 called the Military Family Diaper Assistance Act, intended to also aid military families’ pocketbooks by establishing a pilot program that would connect community diaper banks with military installations to increase affordability and diapers to families in need.
“Military families make enormous sacrifices every day, moving to new communities, juggling deployments, and keeping life running at home while their loved ones serve,” Foushe said in a statement. “Caring for young children under these conditions can already be overwhelming, and access to basic necessities like diapers should never be a struggle.”
“It’s time to provide military families with the support that they’re counting on to help them grow and thrive,” he said.
Law Would Link DoD, Diaper Bank
If taken up by Congress and ultimately voted into law, this legislation would direct Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to enter into an agreement with the National Diaper Bank Network (NDBN)—the nation’s leading organization coordinating the donation and distribution of free diapers and essential supplies across the country.
That arrangement would involve the Department of Defense providing $1 million annually from Fiscal Year 2027, which would begin in October 2026, to FY 2030 to establish the Military Family Diaper Fund.
NDBN would match those federal funds, equating to a combined total four-year investment of $8 million and support diaper distribution centers located within a 20-mile radius of military installations.
Also, per the agreement, NBDN would submit an annual report to Hegseth or whoever is the defense secretary at the time, providing detailed accounts of funding to provide transparency and accountability.
'Readiness and Economic Issue'
The Military Family Diaper Partnership Act is endorsed by NDBN and the Diaper Bank of North Carolina (DBNC) and the National Diaper Bank Network…
Spotlight Session: Diaper Bank of North Carolina
PIR- Spotlight Session: Diaper Bank of North Carolina
What started as one mother’s determination to ease her child’s pain has grown into a statewide movement addressing one of the most overlooked basic needs: access to diapers and hygiene essentials.
In this Spotlight Session, Michelle Schaefer, CEO and founder of the Diaper Bank of North Carolina (DBNC), shares the deeply personal moment that sparked the organization’s founding.
What started as one mother’s determination to ease her child’s pain has grown into a statewide movement addressing one of the most overlooked basic needs: access to diapers and hygiene essentials.
In this Spotlight Session, Michelle Schaefer, CEO and founder of the Diaper Bank of North Carolina (DBNC), shares the deeply personal moment that sparked the organization’s founding. After watching her youngest son suffer from severe diaper rashes, Michelle realized how many families face impossible choices between diapers and other necessities. With public assistance programs like WIC and SNAP unable to cover diapers, she saw a gap that urgently needed to be filled.
Distributing Dignity Across North Carolina
Michelle Schaefer, CEO and founder of Diaper Bank of North Carolina (DBNC), met her youngest son when he was a day old. For the first year and a half of his life, he experienced extremely severe diaper rashes that left him ill and in pain. Despite changing his diaper 30 to 40 times a day, Schaefer could not keep the infections at bay. As her son began to heal, she found herself thinking about parents who could not simply reach for the next diaper to keep their babies clean, dry, and healthy.
Michelle Schaefer, CEO and founder of Diaper Bank of North Carolina (DBNC), met her youngest son when he was a day old. For the first year and a half of his life, he experienced extremely severe diaper rashes that left him ill and in pain. Despite changing his diaper 30 to 40 times a day, Schaefer could not keep the infections at bay. As her son began to heal, she found herself thinking about parents who could not simply reach for the next diaper to keep their babies clean, dry, and healthy. Diaper need is more than a financial stressor, children without enough clean diapers experience higher rates of serious infections, and most childcare programs require parents to provide an adequate diaper supply. Without diapers, children cannot attend daycare or preschool, which can jeopardize their parents’ ability to work, attend school, or maintain financial stability.
Public safety net programs like WIC and SNAP do not cover the cost of diapers, leaving many families to make impossible choices between purchasing diapers and other essentials. Seeing this gap, Schaefer became determined to help meet this most basic need. What began with a single laundry basket of diapers has now grown into four warehouse locations distributing essential hygiene products through trusted nonprofit partners across North Carolina.
NPR- The best volunteers are the ones who are committed and always show up
NPR- A retired nurse knew that many families in her community struggle to afford diapers, so she picked a volunteer job where she could really help.
A retired nurse knew that many families in her community struggle to afford diapers, so she picked a volunteer job where she could really help.
TRANSCRIPT-
AILSA CHANG, HOST: When it comes to volunteering, every organization has people they can always depend on to show up and tackle any task. For our series Here to Help, Rachel Keith, with member Station WHQR, reports on a retired nurse who found her volunteer niche.
RACHEL KEITH, BYLINE: Doris Robinson has a lot of experience with packing diapers. She comes to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina, Lower Cape Fear, every Wednesday.
Half of Cape Fear families struggle to afford diapers, local bank steps in
NEW HANOVER COUNTY (WWAY) — One in two families in the Cape Fear region struggles with buying diapers, forcing many to sacrifice other essentials just to get by.
The Lower Cape Fear Branch of The Diaper Bank of North Carolina works to fill that gap.
Volunteers wrap diapers and gather supplies to load into a van to get to families who need them most.
NEW HANOVER COUNTY (WWAY) — One in two families in the Cape Fear region struggles with buying diapers, forcing many to sacrifice other essentials just to get by.
The Lower Cape Fear Branch of The Diaper Bank of North Carolina works to fill that gap.
Volunteers wrap diapers and gather supplies to load into a van to get to families who need them most.
About 10 percent of what they give out comes from community donations, with the vast majority purchased in bulk by the diaper bank.
Julie Bowling is the director for The Lower Cape Fear branch.
She says the need isn’t just about supplies; it’s about preventing larger consequences for families.
