HAMPTON, Va. — A diaper-packing event in Hampton Thursday helped a local nonprofit mark a major milestone in the nonprofit's effort to help families in need.
That includes Sharon Marshal's family.
As a foster mother who also has her own kids and grandkids, Sharon Marshal knows how helpful a donation of diapers can be.
Watch: Local hospital group helping to cut costs for growing families in need
“Sometimes, you have a baby come in and it’s, like, four or five sets of diapers a day, plus you have to send a whole pack to daycare. So, it’s a whole lot of stress taken off of us," Marshal said.
She is one of the many people who have received diapers from ECHO Family Care Partners. It’s a nonprofit that provides resources, including diapers, to help families.
The nonprofit organized a diaper-packing event Thursday to mark one million diapers given out since the nonprofit started.
Watch: Diaper bank coordinator surprised as Everyday Hero for helping families in need
“It’s hard to be excited about it in one sense because that means there was a million times when someone needed this resource. That, for us, is really heartbreaking. I think what’s cool, what’s exciting to us, is to see the community response," ECHO Family Care Partners Executive Director of Partnerships Randall Nichols said.
While a million diapers may seem like a lot, the nonprofit said one million a year are actually needed to meet the demand.
The diapers come from churches that collect them and a local diaper bank and were packaged to be given out later in the day at the nonprofit’s monthly diaper distribution.
Watch: How families in need can get free diapers
“Our goal is to provide stability for families in crisis, really with the primary goal of preventing the need for foster care intervention," Nichols explained.
For Marshal, the diaper distribution program allows her to continue the work that has had a big impact on her.
Watch: Foster care program bridges gap between teens and resources
“When I first got my set of babies, it was about six, seven years ago," said Marshal. "I got a call. It was almost Christmas. They called and they said they had a set of twins. I told them, I said, ‘I can’t do twins. They’re babies.' Those girls were three months [old.] My whole heart just changed, you know?”
A changed heart, and a whole lot of changed diapers since then, too.
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