The Neighbor’s Place helps ease baby formula shortage

WAUSAU, Wis. (WSAW) - The Neighbors Place is opening its doors to anyone who needs baby formula amidst a worsening shortage. Usually, it’s only for families that need financial assistance, but now, baby formula is more challenging than ever before to find.

“This is a very extenuating circumstance,” said Donna Ambrose, executive director of ‘The Neighbor’s Place.’

One mother from Merrill said she’s getting used to seeing empty shelves in the stores.

“I got a three-year-old, a three-and-a-half-year-old, and an eight-month-old and I can’t find formula anywhere,” said Brittney Holzem, a mother from Merrill.

Holzem said she checked four stores with no luck.

“I’ll go around town and see if I can find anything, but I usually don’t,” said Holzem.

Ambrose said this is a serious situation.

“This could be a life or death situation,” said Ambrose.

Breast milk isn’t always an option for everyone, said Holzem.

“Not all of us breastfeed. We can’t produce it, or just don’t do it anymore,” said Holzem.

Her baby relies on formula.

“You hear that it’s at places and it’s not and you get there and you’re like ‘ugh.’ And with me, I have two kids, so dragging two kids in is hard, and then getting there and you don’t get nothing and it’s like ‘What do I do now?’

To help ease the shortage, The Neighbors Place in Wausau is opening its doors like never before. They began excepting anyone on Friday and word traveled fast.

“Over the weekend we had several families reach out to us,” said Ambrose.

They’re part of the Feeding America Network, which means they get donations from department stores. Sometimes the items have a small dent or the lid might be askew, or the label is not on there properly. It’s all still safe to use. They get most of it from Sam’s, Target and Walmart. It’s for anyone or any income bracket.

“You can imagine if you can afford it, you’re going to feel guilty and think I’m taking it away from somebody else,” said Ambrose.

Ambrose said they don’t want what they have to spoil. What’s most important is making sure each baby has enough food, said Ambrose.

“People are always asking, well how can I help? I would love to say, if you donate money, I can go buy it, but I can’t and nobody else can either,” said Ambrose.

The Neighbors Place said it’s important to think outside of the box to help out families struggling. Ambrose recommends taking a picture of the baby formula aisle and posting it on social media to help other families.

If you or someone you know is also struggling to find food for your baby, you can stop by the neighbor’s place. Here is their website with their hours. They recommend calling or messaging them on social media first. Here is the link to their Facebook page.

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