Diaper Depot, a ministry of Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tamaqua, will mark its fifth anniversary when it distributes free diapers this month.

The ministry began in October 2018 when Zion began taking requests from families in the Tamaqua Area School District. As a pantry of the Greater Philadelphia Diaper Bank, organizers were told to limit requests to a specific geographic area, so the school district boundary was chosen.

That first year, the ministry received 104 requests in three months for diapers delivered to 80 families helping 96 children with 4,800 diapers. After five years, the ministry has handled 2,324 requests; delivered free diapers and baby wipes to 1,952 families; served children 2,620 times, and provided 121,860 diapers.

Diaper requests are received during the month through the Zion website. Diaper bundles are assembled by Zion volunteers the Friday evening before a Saturday morning distribution, usually the third Saturday of the month. Clients pick up their diapers and baby wipes the next morning by appointment and can submit a request for the next month’s distribution.