Our History

The Diaper Bank movement began in 1994 when a small consulting firm decided to give back to their local community during the holiday season. Resolve Inc., located in Tucson, Arizona began their philanthropic endeavor by collecting diapers for a local crisis nursery. Their annual diaper collection tradition continued, and only five years later they were able to collect 300,000 diapers for 30 different agencies. By this time the small consulting firm was spending six months a year preparing for their December Diaper Drive.

BabyPickingUpDiaperFrom 1996 until 1999 the Diaper Bank operated as a program under the nonprofit umbrella of the Carondelet Foundation. In 2000 the Community Diaper Bank of Southern Arizona became a free standing charitable organization, becoming the nation’s first Diaper Bank.

The Diaper Bank hired its first employee in 1999 and still uses more than 100 volunteers annually to provide diapers and incontinence supplies to those in need. In 2004 the New Haven Diaper Bank opened its doors using the model established in Southern Arizona. There are more than 250 Diaper Banks across the country today.

Just as it did at its inception, the Diaper Bank provides diapers to those under the poverty line where no public assistance exists. We recognize that an inadequate supply of diapers puts families with young children at an increased risk for health related problems and potential abuse.

In 2013, the Diaper Bank of Southern Arizona was selected as a Regional Partner of the National Diaper Bank Network to receive and distribute two million diapers to the community in 2013 and 2014. This partnership continues today and with the help of the NDBN and Huggies, we are getting closer to eliminating diaper need in southern Arizona.

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