puerto rico school children

Project Update: Children’s Shelter in Puerto Rico

When Hurricane Maria hit in September 2017, Loraine’s daughter was just weeks old.

She breastfed and already owned a set of cloth diapers, so she was secure in taking care of her infant despite the devastation the storm brought.

“It didn’t cross my mind to think that people were having problems with that until we found a situation where because of the hurricane we got stuck in a building for 2 or 3 weeks,” Loraine said. “Some trees fell and there was no way out and no way in. We have 12 floors in this building. I started hearing babies crying, the moms didn’t have formula – there was a lot of problems. They started giving formulas that were not the ones assigned to the babies … even if the formula gave the babies issues with allergies and stomach issues … afterward, I started looking around and (realized) we needed to do something.”

“The first days after the hurricane, I saw mothers that were desperate for the babies formulas – we would give it to them and they would rapidly pop that bottle into the babies’ mouths,” she said, adding she also saw babies with horrible diaper rashes, allergic reactions, and bloody bottoms because desperate parents used whatever was available to diaper their infants.

Loraine now works directly with Jake’s Diapers to distribute donations to those in need in Puerto Rico. She’s happy to report a positive shift in the lives of those who receive our support.

Parents send her pictures of their babies saying things like, “Look, they are better,” she said.

We reached our goal and this project was completely funded!! Thank you for your support in providing cloth diapers to babies in need in Puerto Rico, you are truly changing lives.