Nancy Woodland

Executive Director, WestSide Baby
Seattle, Washington

Nancy's career has always revolved around helping children. Before taking time off to raise a family, she was an attorney specializing in child abuse litigation.

In 2002, a year after WestSide Baby opened, Nancy attended one of its fundraisers. "My child was just 1-year-old then," says Nancy, "and the stories of moms with no diapers or places for their children to sleep really moved me. One parent in need asked for the photo taken of her child because she had no photos of him. At that moment, I knew I had to become involved."

WestSide Baby, which is mostly run by volunteers, distributes 200,000 diapers a year to more than 100 social service agencies. It also gives out children's clothing, toys, and equipment like cribs and car seats. Strongly supported by the community, Westside Baby collects diapers and other items through a combination of donations and fundraising. Not having enough diapers to meet the need and a lack of storage space are its greatest challenges.

The impact that Westside Baby makes is huge, and many moms receive their diapers with tears of joy. One struggling mom says that getting diapers from Westside Baby makes all the difference in giving her enough money for food and other essential supplies at the end of the month. Diapers also get social workers in the door to assist families who are initially distrustful of help.

Diaper drives for WestSide Baby have become so popular in Nancy's community that almost 168,000 diapers were collected in 2009. "They're also a way for children to learn about giving by having friends bring diapers to birthday parties instead of gifts," says Nancy.

Nancy considers the help that WestSide Baby is receiving from the Every Little Bottom Program to be an incredible blessing and hopes that it will help her diaper bank come a few steps closer to filling the need for diapers within the Seattle area. She's also excited that Every Little Bottom will increase awareness about the need for diapers and provide valuable research data about the impact diapers make.

"I tear up each time someone asks me why I got involved," says Nancy. "I am operating a diaper bank because I know on a daily basis that we are helping a baby to cry less, sleep more peacefully and grin more often."