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BROOKLYN WEEKLY, MARCH 29, 2020
Brooklynites come together
BY ROSE ADAMS
A hodgepodge of handy Brooklynites
have banded together to
make face masks for hospital workers
— and have already delivered
more than 200 to workers in need!
“It’s just a neighborhood push,
and we want to help any way we
can,” said Dani Finkel, a Boerum
Hill resident. “There are doctors
and nurses at these hospitals that
are desperate to get their nurses
and staff something.”
The effort comes as hospitals
across the city are running out of
personal protective gear, jeopardizing
the lives of healthcare workers
and patients. Some medical centers
are already ouA group of workers
at NYU Bellevue say they have less
than one week’s supply remaining.
To help fi ll the gaps, around
March 20, a group of local seamstresses
decided to start the South
Brooklyn Mask Making Project
after they fi rst posted about their
mask-making efforts in a Boerum
Hill Facebook group. Soon, the coalition
came together.
“I started making face masks
because I saw there was a need for
them and to keep some of my seamstresses
busy,” said Yvonne Chu,
who owns a custom dress boutique
called Kimera on Atlantic Avenue.
“A couple of us got started separately,
but we ended up fi nding each
other online.”
Yvonne and other local seamstresses
began recruiting neighbors
through the group, and found
volunteers willing to coordinate
their efforts, make deliveries, and
sew more masks.
“It’s a great thing to do if you
have some time on your hands,”
said Finkel, a digital media strategist
who volunteered to be the
group’s coordinator. “You can get
up to speed in a couple of days practicing
it.”
The team makes masks with
and without fi lter inserts, as well
as folded masks — all of which are
washable and reusable. The team’s
creations are not as effective as N96
masks, but they still provide needed
protection.
The Mask Making Project’s efforts
have spread via word of mouth,
and at least seven other hospitals in
need have requested shipments so
far, including New York Presbyterian
and Mount Sinai in Brooklyn.
On Monday, the team delivered 145
masks to Montefi ore Medical Center
in the Bronx, and nearly 100 to
NYU Langone in Manhattan.
The group aims to start making
more than 200 masks per week, and
hopes to expand and standardize its
production.
In the meantime, locals willing
to help can drop off cotton fabric
donations, such used t-shirts, outside
the Kimera store at 366 Atlantic
Ave.
“We’re working on a GoFundMe
so that we can include masks in
some of their deliveries,” Finkel
said. “Every mask counts.”
BY KEVIN DUGGAN
A Carroll Gardens
high schooler is offering
to deliver groceries
to local old-timers avoid
crowds amid the growing
coronavirus pandemic.
“This seems like
the best I can do with
my abilities, because
the grocery stores have
been really crazy with
everybody stockpiling,”
said 17-year-old Maeve
Foley. “I think it’s really
scary for senior citizens
navigating that kind of
environment.”
The charitable teen
has posted fl yers this
week around the brownstone
neighborhood, offering
to pick up and
deliver on Sunday mornings
for anyone 65 years
of age or older.
“I’ll stop by whatever
grocery store they want
me to,” she said.
Foley said she’s had
a number of other dogooders
reach out to help
her with the project.
“Some other young,
able-bodied people have
taken down my number
and we’re going to
be in contact depending
on how many people we
get,” she said.
In order to prevent
further spread
of COVID-19 while doing
her deliveries, the
youngster will take several
precautions against
the highly-contagious
respiratory illness, like
wearing a medical face
mask and gloves, and
sanitizing her equipment
in between deliveries.
The senior’s school in
Manhattan shut down
due to the virus and
she was eager to do her
part to make life easier
for her neighbors during
the outbreak, which
has swept the city and
has largely shut down
or limited businesses in
the borough.
The virus is potentially
more lethal for
older citizens, making it
particularly important
that they avoid crowds,
like at some popular supermarkets.
Volunteers making face masks for hospitals
Teen offers free
grocery runs
for BK seniors
Yvonne Chu and a group of local seamstresses are creating face masks for hospitals in need. Photo courtesy of Yvonne Chu
17-yer-old Maeve Foley. wants to help her elderly neighbors
during the coronavirus outbreak. Photo by Kevin Duggan