Community Spotlight: Changing More Than Diapers

From the Right: Cherrelle, Sama (Director of Family Services), Tom (ARSP Volunteer), Ernestine (Family Support Specialist)

During one of our weekly Diaper Drive Fridays, our team had the pleasure of meeting a new community partner: Cherrelle's Enterprise LLC. Motivated by a shared commitment to supporting Philadelphia families, Cherrelle stopped by to donate 26 packs of diapers. This generous donation has already supported several families who have connected with Family Promise of Philadelphia, increasing access to one of the most essential — and often overlooked — items for young, housing-insecure children.

Why Diapers Matter for Housing-Insecure Families

Diapers are a necessity, yet they are an expensive resource that housing-insecure and low-income families may be forced to ration. According to the National Diaper Bank Network (2024), the average monthly cost of diapers can reach as high as $100 per child. Government assistance programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) do not cover diapers. While Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) can be used, parents must stretch these funds across many other expenses. When families don't have enough diapers, it can increase health risks for babies, limit childcare options, cause parents to miss work, and add stress to an already overwhelming situation.

At Family Promise of Philadelphia, we hear parents highlight diaper insecurity as a recurring challenge. Through our basic needs support program, we work to alleviate this pressure so families don't have to make trade-offs between rent, food, and the health and hygiene of their children. Our Diaper Drive Fridays exist to help fill this gap, and Cherrelle's donation arrived at exactly the right time.

Listening to Families, Responding with Care

Cherrelle is the founder of Cherrelle's Enterprise LLC, a community-based consulting and outreach organization focused on reducing barriers to care and helping families access essential resources. Through her partnership with Fabric Health, she supports referral pathways that connect individuals and families to Medicaid, SNAP, and other critical benefits.

Fabric Health partners with laundromats in Pennsylvania and beyond to meet people where they are. While helping with benefits enrollment, Cherrelle and her colleagues noticed a recurring theme.

"While we were [at the laundromats], we would run into a lot of moms and their children," Cherrelle shared. "And we'd just talk to them about resources that were needed. Diapers was one of them."

That insight led Fabric Health to pursue a grant specifically to support diaper distribution. Once secured, they began intentionally seeking out maternal health and family-serving organizations that could get diapers directly into the hands of families who needed them most.

Moving Forward Together

For partners like Cherrelle, Family Promise of Philadelphia offers more than a place to donate goods. Our relationships with families allow our partners’ generosity to translate into real, immediate impact.

We are incredibly thankful to Cherrelle and Fabric Health for their generosity and commitment to community-driven solutions. And we’re excited to continue building this partnership to meet the needs of more families across Philadelphia.