Supporting Healthy Babies and Healthy Families: An Overview of So What Else’s Baby Pantry Services
As a resource provider, So What Else feels that it is critically important that we take a whole-family approach to the support we provide our clients. That’s why in 2020, So What Else expanded support to underserved families by providing diapers, baby food, nursing pads, and formula, free of charge. In addition to our core mission to provide hunger relief to food-insecure communities, we believe every family deserves access to basic necessities, and by providing expensive infant items to those struggling the most, So What Else can help to ensure happier, healthier babies and their families.
Since implementing our baby pantry in 2020, we’ve scaled operations considerably. In 2023 alone, we provided over $320,000 worth of baby items to over 3,000 families across Baltimore, Montgomery County, DC, Frederick County, PG County, and Virginia. All of this is possible due to our extensive network of partners including the wonderful team at the Greater DC Diaper Bank. We’re especially proud to have distributed over 765,000 diapers last year, a staple resource that has become increasingly expensive due to inflation and supply chain issues, improving access and easing critical financial decisions for our clients.
In expanding our infant resource services, over 4,000 infants were able to receive the care they need to grow up strong and healthy, creating a positive foundation for the next generation of leaders, change makers, and advocates. To learn more about So What Else’s work to support local families in 2023, see the data below. Thank you to our supporters and the Greater DC Diaper Bank for making this program possible. We could not have done it without you.
If you are interested in volunteering with us:
All SWE volunteer opportunities are listed here & signing up is easy! Create your profile and browse opportunities that fit your interests and availability. Please be sure to register for each instance of a volunteer opportunity you wish to serve. For example, if you want to help out at the Saturday Outdoor Food Pantry, be sure to sign up each time (instance) you want to serve. Please note that sign-ups will be deactivated 24 hours before the start of an opportunity. For last-minute sign ups, please send an email to volunteer@sowhatelse.org.
If you are interested in Group / Team / Organization volunteering, please contact us at volunteer@sowhatelse.org!
If you’re interested in volunteering at one of our after-school or summer camp programs, please send an email to vfuentes@sowhatelse.org.
We hope to see you soon!
