Louisville Diaper Bank Sees Rising Need as Economy Strains Families

Deanna Hornback has spent 14 years running Kentucky's only diaper bank out of a Catholic parish in Prospect, and the families showing up in need have never numbered more.

The Saint Bernadette Diaper Bank distributes diapers through a network of 13 Louisville-area nonprofits that serve low-income and unhoused families across the city and surrounding counties. As the cost of living has climbed, so has demand. "The need, it's just going up constantly," Hornback said. "With the struggles of this economy and the cost of living, we see it through the agencies, and of course the agencies see it when working with the individuals."

The harm compounds quickly once a family runs short. Most licensed childcare centers will not accept a child without a day's supply of diapers on hand, which creates an immediate, difficult choice. "OK, so they want to go to work, so they take their child to day care, but they don't have the money to buy that day's supply of diapers," Hornback said. "Now they can't drop their kid at day care, which causes them to miss work. It's like a catch-22."

The problem runs wider than Louisville. Diaper insecurity, a term developed by the National Diaper Bank Network, has grown from affecting roughly one in three U.S. families in the mid-2010s to nearly half in 2024, driven in part by a 22 percent rise in diaper prices between 2018 and 2022. For some households, the total cost of diapers in a baby's first year can exceed $1,000. Neither SNAP nor WIC covers diapers, and state and federal proposals to remove diaper sales taxes or create dedicated funding streams have stalled with little implemented progress.

Saint Bernadette runs entirely on donations and volunteer hours. Students from Ascension Catholic School are among the regulars, bringing in packages and helping sort and bundle diapers for distribution. Charlotte Cochran, a student volunteer, said the work shifts her perspective quickly. "It's a really good experience," Cochran said. "I'm happy that we're able to help out the community and those in need. I have a little sister, and just thinking about if she wasn't able to have a diaper, that would just be terrible."

To build awareness and raise money, the organization is hosting its Dancing for Diapers Gala on April 25, from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Donations of diapers can be dropped off at the parish center at 6500 St. Bernadette Avenue in Prospect. Those who want to contribute or arrange a pickup can reach the bank at 502-425-2210, extension 214. For families with a new baby on the way, requesting diaper funds at a shower, or contributing directly to the bank, puts resources where Hornback and her volunteers can stretch them furthest.