One by One
Beantown Baby Diaper Bank, Recipient

Beantown Baby Diaper Bank

Lexington, Massachusetts

Volunteer thank-you gifts show love for diaper bank team

Rachel Segaloff wasn’t called “the diaper lady” back in 2012. After the birth of her second child, she first learned of the need for diapers in her community and across the country. It sparked the idea to organize her first diaper drive at her child’s daycare, which kickstarted the momentum that continues to build today. In 2024, her nonprofit, Beantown Baby Diaper Bank, distributed about 160,000 diapers to families in need and is on pace to nearly double that in 2025.

“There I was, a new mom for the second time, and the idea of not being able to change my child’s diaper whenever I need to—there’s something so wrong with that,” said Segaloff, Beantown Baby Diaper Bank founder and executive director. “It shouldn’t be that way. It doesn’t have to be that way.”

Helping cover basic needs

Nationwide, one in two families with young children cannot afford enough diapers to keep their child clean, dry and healthy. It’s a common misconception that federal and state assistance programs like Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) help cover diapers—but they don’t.

When Segaloff learned about the need for diapers, she took meaningful action. Soon after, she earned her reputation as “the diaper leady” among community members. Following a model used by organizations in the National Diaper Bank Network, Beantown Baby Diaper Bank raises money, runs diaper drives, purchases diapers and distributes them to partners in the greater Boston area. These partners include food pantries, homeless shelters, early education centers and domestic abuse programs.

The organization’s efforts ramped up in 2024. That’s when Segaloff left her professional career in nonprofit fundraising to lead Beantown Baby Diaper Bank full time. She assembled a board of directors and grew its network of partners. “In October I came to the realization I could either keep it as it was, or I could put everything into it and try to grow it to meet the need,” she said.

Showing appreciation through volunteer thank-you gifts

In addition to the organization’s six board members, Segaloff’s work is supported by many dedicated volunteers. From community members who organize diaper drives to people who pitch in once a month to move about 30,000 diapers out the door in just three hours, it takes a village to get the work done.

To thank the nonprofit’s hardworking volunteers, Segaloff used a one by one grant to provide them with water bottles and notebooks. “As I’m growing, I thought it would be great to have some swag they could have to show they’re part of this organization.”

A note from Cheryl

The founding of Beantown Baby Diaper Bank is an inspiring story of one person seeing a need and putting in remarkable effort to address it. We were proud to supply volunteer thank-you gifts for Segaloff to give to her team. If you’re interested in a one by one grant, visit onebyone.4imprint.com.

“What Is Diaper Need?” National Diaper Bank Network, n.d., nationaldiaperbanknetwork.org/the-need

For more information about Beantown Baby Diaper Bank, please visit https://beantownbabydiaperbank.org/

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