News & Events
Carolina Strong: Former police officer leads effort to keep local waterways clean
Kevin Kendrick’s focus now is a little different than it used to be.
“I was a Detroit police officer for a few years, beginning in 1977 before joining the FBI in 1981.”
His FBI career lasted 25 years before Kendrick ventured into the private sector and his civic engagement really began.
“I learned so much about what is happening in the community to help people live better lives.”
He now leads Rotary District 7680, the service organization that covers 14 counties, and spearheads some major efforts.
Kevin Kendrick’s focus now is a little different than it used to be.
“I was a Detroit police officer for a few years, beginning in 1977 before joining the FBI in 1981.”
His FBI career lasted 25 years before Kendrick ventured into the private sector and his civic engagement really began.
“I learned so much about what is happening in the community to help people live better lives.”
He now leads Rotary District 7680, the service organization that covers 14 counties, and spearheads some major efforts.
Eastern North Carolina organizations tackle increasing period product prices
The price of feminine products have increased nearly 10% in the past 5 years leaving some women to have to make the decision between pads and groceries.
And while some organizations are trying to provide these products to those in the most need, there is not much access here in Eastern North Carolina.
The price of feminine products have increased nearly 10% in the past 5 years leaving some women to have to make the decision between pads and groceries.
And while some organizations are trying to provide these products to those in the most need, there is not much access here in Eastern North Carolina.
In recent years, women worldwide are suffering from what’s being called period poverty with the rising cost of feminine products.
Here in Eastern North Carolina, some organizations are trying to help provide these products for those in need.
Period supplies in schools are critical to education and health, schools and advocates say
Every day, North Carolina students who cannot afford period supplies are forced to ask teachers or school staff for feminine hygiene products. Some students miss school because they don’t have tampons or menstrual pads at home.
Advocates for ending “period poverty,” the lack of access to supplies due to lack of income, met at the Legislative Building on Wednesday to emphasize the importance the issue has for education and student health.
Public school districts and charter schools eagerly dipped into a state grant program for feminine hygiene products that the legislature started in 2021 with $250,000.
Schools are able to obtain up to $5,000 a year for supplies. The current budget increased total funding to $500,000 a year.
Michelle Schaefer-Old, founder and CEO of the Diaper Bank of NC, said they wanted to thank legislators for what they’ve done so far, and to encourage them “to add to it.” The Diaper Bank founded the Period Power Coalition, a group of organizations working to end period poverty.
North Carolina woman who launched diaper bank reaches out for donations
HIGH POINT, N.C. (WGHP) — Inside the Baby Basics closet at the YWCA High Point, visitors will find free clothes, baby formula and diapers.
“A lot of people are very grateful,” Director of the Women’s Resource Center at YWCA High Point Regina Johnson said. “One lady said to me, ‘I don’t know what I was going to do because I was down to my last diaper.'”
That’s a decision Michelle Schaefer-Old never wants families to face and what led her to launch the Diaper Bank of North Carolina in 2013 from her kitchen table in Durham.
Baby food and formula have one of the highest inflation increases, according to consumer report
HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. — Baby food and formula have had one of the highest inflation rates since last year, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index.
What You Need To Know
Baby food and formula prices rose 8.7% from Jan. 2023 to Jan. 2024
The Diaper Bank of North Carolina helps families by supplying diapers, formulas and feminine hygiene products
The bank recently moved to a larger location to help service more families
Reports show raising a child born in 2023 compared to a child born in 2011, costs around 30% more
KEEP READING
Diaper Bank of North Carolina donates 5,000 diapers to FOX8 Community Baby Shower
FOX8 COMMUNITY
Diaper Bank of North Carolina donates 5,000 diapers to FOX8 Community Baby Shower
Students in Guilford County Schools now have access to free period products
Students at all Guilford County Schools traditional high schools now have access to free period products, thanks to the Period Power initiative by the Diaper Bank of North Carolina.
NC nonprofit working to ease the financial burden of diapers, hygiene products for families in the Charlotte area
“We distributed almost 400,000 diapers last year, that was only 4% of the need last year in Mecklenburg County," Avery Payne with Diaper Bank NC, said. It’s a dream that has blossomed into reality in over a decade.
CLICK IMAGE TO KEEP READING
“We distributed almost 400,000 diapers last year, that was only 4% of the need last year in Mecklenburg County," Avery Payne with Diaper Bank NC, said.
Six GLOW students award $1,000 grant to Diaper Bank of North Carolina
Six Girls Leadership Academy of Wilmington (GLOW) students awarded a $1,000 grant to the Diaper Bank of North Carolina-Lower Cape Fear on Tuesday, March 26.
The students are part of the Student Giving Circle, an initiative of the Women’s Impact Network of New Hanover County.
CLICK IMAGE TO KEEP READING
Southern Living Magazine Spotlight
MICHELLE OLD’S eyes were opened to the huge need for diapers after adopting her youngest child. “He was very sick for the first year and a half,” she says of her son, who is now 11 years old. “We were changing him 30 to 40 times a day, but he’d still end up in the emergency room with diaper rashes. His body could not fight off any type of infection or irritation.”
CLICK IMAGE TO KEEP READING
MICHELLE OLD’S eyes were opened to the huge need for diapers after adopting her youngest child. “He was very sick for the first year and a half,” she says of her son, who is now 11 years old. “We were changing him 30 to 40 times a day, but he’d still end up in the emergency room with diaper rashes. His body could not fight off any type of infection or irritation.”
The mother of three recognized it was a privilege to be able to provide the hygienic care he needed, and she devoted herself to ensuring other parents could do the same. She started small, packing a laundry hamper full of diapers into a van and donating them around Durham. Her goal that first year was to give away 50,000. In the decade since, Old’s organization, the Diaper Bank of North Carolina, has created four centers across the state and supplied more than 23 million diapers to residents. “One in three families in the United States lacks access to clean diapers,” explains Old. “Government programs like WIC and SNAP (or food stamps) don’t cover them, and they can cost over $100 a month. People are literally choosing between buying groceries or diapers.” Old says that when parents and guardians are in this situation, they pick food first. That is a decision she doesn’t want families to face. Her organization partners with food pantries, other nonprofits, and schools so those who need hygiene supplies (including period and adult-incontinence products) receive them. If you’re interested in launching a similar effort in your own community, Old advises starting small. “It’s as simple as putting up a collection box, spreading the word to your network, gathering diapers or other resources, and picking a program to distribute those items through,” she says.
