AUSTIN, Texas — During this period of shelter-in-place, some Austinites are using their time at home to help save lives.
Volunteers who live in Austin’s Circle C neighborhood have banded together to fill an urgent need by creating protective masks for hospital and clinic workers.
A total of 120 volunteers have been working from home to prepare the fabric, sew and distribute the masks to a number of hospitals such as Dell Children’s, St. David’s and others.
“In just over a week, we have made and given out 700 masks so far, and we producing about 1,000 more,” volunteer Aileen Chen said.
As one of the originators of the project, Chen used the Circle C private Facebook group to rally the troops to take on the mission of mask making.
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“From what we’re hearing from the health care workers themselves, there’s a big shortage and they’re not certain when their extra supplies will come,” Chen said.
Circle C neighbors have joined thousands of volunteers across the country who are using their own resources to fill the urgent need for protective masks during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak – a tradition of pitching in that dates back to the flu pandemic of 1918.
“It’s really amazing to see how people can gather together and put their minds together to do something to help others,” Chen said. “Especially at a time like this, that’s very much needed.”
Volunteers drop off gift bags filled with masks that they are confident may save lives.
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