Dipes &$1Wipes Drive

It will cost an estimated $241,080 for a middle-income couple to raise a child born last year for 18 years, according to a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report. Disposable diapers and baby wipes alone can cost families more than $100 a month.

The Texas Nursing Students’ Association (TNSA) at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) is sponsoring a Dipes & Wipes Drive benefitting the Stork’s Nest to help local women get much-needed baby supplies.

Community members are encouraged to drop donations of diapers and baby wipes in bins scattered throughout the TTUHSC building located at 3601 4th St., through Nov. 30, said TNSA President Shikha Narang.

“We as future health care providers, serve our patients daily, but reaching out to the community and serving those in need in whatever way we can is very important as well,” Narang said. “What better way than giving back to the mothers and the babies in need?”

The Lubbock Chapter of the Stork’s Nest helps expectant moms access early and consistent prenatal care, gain education about having the healthiest baby possible and receive new baby items in return.

The Larry Combest Community Health & Wellness Center and March of Dimes host an annual Stork’s Nest Baby Shower where community members can donate new baby items that are given as incentives to encourage pregnant women and teens to receive regular prenatal care.

With the help of the Lubbock community, the Combest Center and the March of Dimes have raised more than $354,000 for pregnant women and teens on the South Plains since the Stork’s Nest Baby Shower began more than a decade ago.

The Stork’s Nest is a national cooperative project of the March of Dimes and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority Inc. The project is also part of the Combest Center, a nonprofit nurse managed primary health care center operated by the TTUHSC School of Nursing.

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