​It hasn't been too long since David, business development senior account manager in Arkansas, and his wife were buying diapers for their son. So, when he heard about families in northwest Arkansas struggling to get a sufficient supply of diapers — particularly with substantially increased costs for groceries and supplies recently — it tugged at his heartstrings.

The Family Network Inc. in Springdale, Arkansas, saw a huge increase in requests for diapers from families and local organizations asking for help during COVID-19. Their research found no diaper banks in Arkansas, so they started the Diaper Collective.

David began serving as a Black Hills Energy Ambassador in 2022 and has supported several community service efforts. As you know, our ambassadors play a vital leadership role at Black Hills Energy, with community service that includes initiating volunteer hours or in-kind drives.

After putting some thought into a service project where we could make an impact, David rallied his fellow ambassadors to promote diaper collections at the Rogers and Fayetteville divisions and Millsap office in Fayetteville, but he also reached out to his business partners and asked for their support. Having worked alongside our large-volume customers for several years, he didn't hesitate to call on Tyson, Sam's Club, Butterball, Cargill and other companies that were more than ready to partner with us to help meet this need. David also spoke at a Springdale Chamber of Commerce networking coffee at Sam's Club about the diaper drive.

Ask David about this month-long drive and he will tell you - perhaps with a lump in his throat, as he gets a little emotional about it! – that the challenge resulted in a whopping 6,000 diapers for families in need. That includes 3,000 donated diapers and nearly $600 in cash (equivalent to 3,000 diapers).

Not only that, he says he's ready to do it every year. And don't worry – we can always make room for more collection boxes!

Well done Arkansas!

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