LEE, Mass. — It's depressing to be unable to provide for your child. With diapers costing more than $100 a month, that's happening to thousands of parents in Berkshire County.

 

Most government assistance programs don't cover the cost of diapers and hundreds of parents are struggling or are just one incident away from struggling to provide them for their children. But a group of mental health professionals are trying to change that.

 

In September, a team of volunteers launched the Berkshire County Diaper Project, which delivers hundreds of diapers to local food pantries to be there for those who need it. In just six months, the group has provided more than 20,000 diapers to local families.

 

"We've only started in September but it has really hit a community need," said Marie Rudden, who started the effort. "We've dispersed more than $20,000 and that really only hits the top of the iceberg."

 

The mission is twofold: first to provide diapers to whoever needs them through collections and donations and second to craft legislation to implement a state voucher program for low-income families. The project was driven from the mental health community following a speech from Dr. Megan Smith from the Yale School of Public Health, who found the struggle for diapers causes significant stress and depression in parents which leads to developmental issues in children.

 

"The leading stressor in low-income parents isn't so much food but diapers," Rudden said. "It is a mental health issue and a physical health issue."

 

Cloth diapers aren't an option for many low-income families because of a lack of access to washers and dryers and laundrymat dryers often have heat levels that destroy the diapers. Without the money to buy disposable ones wholesale, the price goes up for families.

 

"Sadly, what happens for families that can't buy wholesale, they are reduced to going into a convenience store and buying one at a time," Rudden said. 

 

And it is not just low-income families. When mothers of dual-income families go on maternity leave they aren't being paid, which tightens the budget. 

 

Rudden decided last summer that she wanted to do something small to fill that need. She teamed up with Austin Riggs Center and the Berkshire Psychoanalytic Institute. Austin Riggs accepts monetary donations for the group and the Berkshire Psychoanalytics provides staff time for administrative and bookkeeping work. Some 20 volunteers have reached out to businesses and schools to organize drives and then they go out and deliver the diapers to five places in the county.

 

"To buy $300 worth of diapers and bring them to a good pantry is so fulfilling," said Marcy Gaul, who was one of the first volunteers to join the project.

 

At South Congregational Church in Pittsfield, the diapers were gone in a less than 36 hours. At the Lee food bank, it was about the same. The needs proved to be much more than Rudden was expecting.

 

"Seeing diapers flying off the food pantry shelves and that we couldn't keep up was a surprise," Rudden said. "I don't think I ever dreamed we'd be at 20,000 diapers by March."

 

So the group ramped up its efforts. Local businesses including SABIC, the Mahaiwe Theater, NBT Bank, Carr Hardware, Country Curtains and Henry's Electric jumped on board to hold drives collecting both money and diapers. The Pittsfield Rotary, the Lee Kiwanis Club, Grace Episcopal Church, Berkshire Country Day School, Dalton Elementary School, and St. Paul's Church in Stockbridge did the same.

 

"So many of the schools, churches, businesses and community organization have been contributing enormously," Rudden said. "It is just a real community effort."

 

They set up donation boxes at Berkshire Nautilus in Pittsfield, the Lee Food Pantry, St. Paul's Church, the Stockbridge and West Stockbridge post offices, K's Closet in Otis and at the Becket Federated Church. 

 

"We have zero overhead so every penny goes to diapers," Rudden said, but that's still not filling the entire need. "At the moment we're really looking for donations."

 

Those who need diapers can pick them up at the Christian Center and South Congregational Chuch food pantry in Pittsfield, Community Health Program's in Great Barrington, the Lee Food Bank, K's Closet and at Becket Federated Church.

 

"You don't have to quality. You don't have to apply. You just walk in and say you want to pick up some diapers," Gaul said.

 

While 500 diapers are gone within a day and a half in Pittsfield, the group knows there is a tremendous need in north county. They're hoping to find people there to take the lead on an effort to serve Adams and North Adams. 

 

Meanwhile, Gaul is heading the effort to craft a piece of state legislation to start a voucher program. She is meeting with state Rep. William "Smitty" Pignatelli and the Berkshire United Way to discuss the best tactic. The women, infants, and children program (WIC) has a focus on nutrition and won't cover them. Food stamps won't cover them. There are some funds from the federal government though head start but that's limited.

 

"We're going to see if there is any kind of relief possible," Rudden said. "What everybody would like to see is diapers covered under the WIC program."

 

On the federal level, a 2011 bill to make funding for diapers available has sat in committee with no action so local volunteers are looking to the state to craft a program. The likely option would be the creation of a voucher program like the city of San Francisco is expected to launch.