Jakes Network of Hope

Jake's Network of Hope is a nonprofit focused on solving core issues related to poverty. We alleviate financial burdens while providing dignity to individuals on the path to self sufficiency. We have a number of basic needs programs, with an emphasis on hygiene and the ability to support highly individualized needs, from home goods to school supplies, toys and more. We do not work directly with people in poverty but instead partner with other nonprofits to distribute supplies. This re-allocates our partners' time from sourcing items to focusing on their programs, while also meeting basic needs in the community.

Our origin story is quite less complex than today’s operations. In January 2011, Jake’s Founders Ann Hinkfuss and Stephanie Bowers participated in a mission trip to Peru. While there, they visited an orphanage that was reusing disposable diapers as a way to cut costs and afford other basic necessities, such as food. Soon after, Stephanie had her own little one — Jake — running around in cloth diapers. In 2013, Ann was preparing for a return trip and the two started collecting cloth diapers to donate to this orphanage. Some of Jake’s surplus diapers made the cut for donations.

Thus, Jake’s Diapers was born. We started with a goal of helping only 15 babies at this orphanage in Peru and quickly grew to a nonprofit with a global reach. We learned a lot about the power of a diaper as a key tool in helping families of young children move from poverty to achieve self sufficiency. In 2017, we started to pilot programs to distribute period products and adult care essential incontinence products to support more diverse hygiene needs.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic propelled our role as a sourcing and distribution partner for these hygiene products and diverse basic needs items to our partners. Now Jake’s Network of Hope, our Wisconsin-based operations make up the vast majority of our programming, with a local partner list of 80 and growing.