UM Panhellenic Chapters Donate Diapers, Supplies to Oxford Pregnancy Center After Winter Storm

Winter Storm Fern left the Pregnancy Center of Oxford struggling to serve the expecting mothers and young families who depend on its monthly free diaper distributions, and now University of Mississippi Panhellenic chapters have mobilized a campus-wide drive to help restock the nonprofit's shelves before March 27.

The center, which operates entirely on donations, provides free pregnancy tests, ultrasounds, diapers, clothes, and toys to clients in the Oxford community. A January ice storm had already left the center short on supplies before Fern compounded the damage, and volunteer Danielle Lewis said the recovery process is slow by the nature of nonprofit operations.

"We are still seeing the effect, you know. We have our normal people who would come monthly because we offer free diapers once a month and replenishing what we had given out takes a little bit to rebuild, you know, being a nonprofit," Lewis said.

The Panhellenic community at Ole Miss responded with a campus-wide diaper drive, collecting supplies and raising funds with a stated goal of $2,000. Mary Cile Meaghan, a member of Kappa Delta, said the effort reflects a core value of Greek life on campus.

"I think one of our big pillars with just in general Greek life is philanthropy. Just because we have such a mass amount of girls who we just want to be able to help," Meaghan said.

Students are pushing to collect as much as possible by March 27. Meaghan said the $2,000 target is a floor, not a ceiling.

"Right now, our goal is $2,000. But of course, if we hit that, we would love to keep going over it," she said.

Lewis said the center draws its funding from businesses, churches, and individuals within Oxford, and characterized the Panhellenic response as an extension of that same community commitment.

"We really are Oxford helping Oxford. We want to help our community. And the community has blessed us greatly with resources. Most of our funding comes from businesses, churches and individuals here," Lewis said.

The center's monthly free diaper distributions represent one of its most relied-upon services, and Lewis noted that rebuilding that inventory after a disruption takes time. The Panhellenic drive, still active through March 27, aims to close that gap before the next round of distributions.