Don Fitzgerald will be running the Bank of America Chicago Marathon Oct. 12 with a purpose: He hopes to raise $20,000 to buy 80,000 diapers for Catholic Charities’ Diaper Depot which distributes diapers each month to families who cannot afford this basic need. Don Fitzgerald learned all about the need from his longtime friend and colleague, Don Rosanova who has served as a lead volunteer at the Diaper Depot in Lake County for seven years.
A 2023 study by the National Diaper Bank Network found that one in two U.S. families with young children cannot afford enough diapers to keep their infant or child clean, dry, and healthy. “And what they’re doing as an alternative,” Rosanova said, “they’re putting plastic bags on the kids, newspapers, and towels [as substitutes for diapers] to extend their limited supply of disposable diapers in addition to extending the length of time that they keep the diaper on the child, and that results in a lot of different consequences.”
Diaper insecurity not only endangers the health of the child but impacts the mother. “The mom that is facing diaper need has a tremendous amount of anxiety and stress. They’re figuring out, ‘When can I change the baby? How often can I change the baby? I don’t have diapers to bring to the daycare so I can’t go to work,’” Rosanova said.
Diapers are expensive, averaging about $100 or more a month, or $1,200 a year per child. Fitzgerald witnessed the costs firsthand when his grandson was born last August.
“I decided to run these miles with a purpose this year and try fundraising for diaper insecurity,” Fitzgerald said, adding he’s run 27 marathons. “And after all these years of marathoning, it was a nice motivation, and a pleasant surprise of how generous people have been.”
Hoping to reach his goal
His Go Fund Me page has raised $18,830 as of Sept. 17, and he also received a donation of two pallets of diapers valued at $2,000 from Mariano’s, where Fitzgerald and Rosanova worked together for 11 years. Runners participating in the 2024 Bank of America Chicago Marathon Charity Program raised $36 million for local, national, and global nonprofits, according to the Bank of America. This year, 17,000 participants are running for 217 charities.
“I think we’re also helping amplify the message and building awareness about diaper insecurity with our campaign, because like me, so many others don’t know about it,” Fitzgerald said.
The National Diaper Bank Network Study found that 404,000 children under the age of 3 are at risk of diaper need in Illinois, which is why the services provided by the Diaper Depot are so vital.
The Diaper Depot works with 30 partners and distributed 225,120 diapers to 995 babies in Fiscal Year 2025.
Fitzgerald bought a pin depicting a diaper that he will wear on marathon day.
“I’ll try to use that as motivation when it gets really hard for me,” Fitzgerald said. “I will reflect and think about the children, I’ll think about the need, I’ll think about the baby who’s dealing with this pain, I’ll think about the mom or dad dealing with mental anguish. I can push a little further because there’s miles with purpose. I’ll touch that pin and find some incremental motivation.
“If it could help along those 26.2 miles, that’s a good day.”
