DACC Volleyball Tournament Raises Diapers for Student Parents in Need

A volleyball tournament at NMSU's intramural fields will double as a campus-wide diaper drive when Doña Ana Community College's Health & Wellness Program hosts the third annual "Serve & Support: Volley for a Cause" on Saturday, April 25, beginning at 9 a.m.

The entry fee is not paid in cash. Every co-ed team, which can roster up to 12 players, must bring a minimum $100 donation of diapers or baby wipes to register. All collected supplies go directly to the DACC Diaper Bank, a resource established to help student parents afford basic necessities that most standard financial assistance programs do not cover.

Diapers sit at the center of a hardship that gets little attention outside student-parent communities. Unlike groceries, diapers are not covered by SNAP or WIC benefits, leaving families to absorb a cost that routinely exceeds $70 to $80 per month, per child, entirely out of pocket. For a student managing tuition, textbooks, and childcare simultaneously, that gap is not trivial. The DACC Diaper Bank exists specifically to close it, keeping families stocked so that financial pressure on one household essential does not cascade into missed classes or dropped enrollment.

The tournament is structured around two brackets: competitive for teams looking to play hard, and recreational for those wanting a lower-stakes entry. That split matters for recruitment. A department looking to field a team for a good cause but light on volleyball experience fits just as well in the recreational bracket as a group of seasoned players chasing a championship. The co-ed requirement opens the door even further, drawing participants from across departments, student organizations, and the broader Las Cruces community.

For campus businesses, local retailers, and community organizations, the event offers a direct sponsorship lane. A company that donates a bulk supply of diapers on behalf of a team earns both a spot in the bracket and a visible connection to student wellness. That kind of community goodwill is difficult to replicate through conventional advertising, and it routes product exactly where documented need already exists.

Teams that want to compete but need help sourcing supplies can pool contributions from colleagues, classmates, or supporters, turning the $100 minimum into a shared collection effort before the first serve. For those who cannot participate on the court, the DACC Diaper Bank accepts contributions independently of the tournament. The fields at the corner of Stewart and Locust streets will be the site of the action on April 25, but the supply line the event builds runs through an entire semester's worth of student-parent households in Doña Ana County.