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Sewa for Medical Workers - DIY Masks made with compassion and dedication

10 Apr 2020 11:07 AM | Suresh Vaishya (Administrator)

Sewa for Medical Workers - DIY Masks made with compassion and dedication, 9 April 2020

written by Youth for Sewa, Samhitha Cinthala

Join the COVID-19 DIY Mask Project!

Service organizations nationwide and nonprofits including Sewa International USA have successfully raised funds for reliable PPE to be donated immediately for medical workers around the United States. There is an urgent need to stop the spread of COVID-19 and it will greatly help if communities at large take protective measures such as following good hygiene and wearing face masks as recommended by the CDC.

Sewa is actively building a community of selfless volunteers who have joined a nationwide DIY Mask Project to create multilayer cloth masks that can be utilized in different healthcare settings. These cloth masks can be used perhaps as an additional layer over higher protection PPE (N95s, KN95s, FFP2 masks) in order to prolong this PPE usability for nurses and physicians. In addition, these cloth masks can be laundered and then used for patient care.

The DIY Mask Project is rapidly growing as more volunteers are joining this momentum in states such as Massachusetts, New Jersey, California, and Georgia. We are calling all community members who want to contribute and help in this effort to get involved in this nationwide DIY Mask Project. Whether you enjoy sewing or are interested in helping deliver materials and masks, please consider joining this initiative to help protect our medical workers and community members in need of masks.

Sign-up to volunteer using this spreadsheet!

To get started, you can use this site for more information on how to make these masks. 

Sewa Atlanta Chapter

A dedicated and growing group of more than 30 volunteers in Atlanta from areas such as Cumming, Suwanee, and Norcross have been creating DIY masks at home. Volunteers who are interested in joining this effort can do a brief training to get started. This coordinated effort requires great logistic support and materials for the masks which are picked up and dropped off by various volunteers. Mask-makers use sewing machines they have at home or ones that are distributed to them, cotton fabric, and interface materials (non-woven fabrics) to create these layered cloth masks. The team has chosen a simple and effective design that is both easy to stitch and limits wastage of material.

    

     

Compassionate adult and youth Sewa Atlanta volunteers making masks for our medical workers

The goal of making 25-50 masks per volunteer every week is a challenge that is graciously overcome. Some volunteers have been making 100 masks per collection.

WhatsApp group posts of each volunteer’s efforts are supported by encouraging comments from fellow volunteers. Daily Zoom meetings allow all volunteers to discuss decisions and get updates regarding mask materials. The mask production team comprises volunteers working on material, design, inventory management, logistics and distribution of these masks.

Requests and next steps for bettering the DIY mask-making process builds a strong community that serves our healthcare workers as they combat COVID-19 on the frontlines. Current suggestions from volunteers include exploring corporate level distribution of masks through Sewa to local stores such as Publix, Walmart, and Kroger in the near future.

In spite of self-quarantining and changes due to social distancing that COVID-19 has brought into all of our lives, Sewa volunteers collectively bring each other up and inspire one another to do better for our society.


Masks created by Sewa Atlanta volunteers are both effective and creative

Sewa Atlanta has donated a total of around 475 masks so far to Atlanta area hospitals in need including Northside Hospitals, Piedmont Healthcare Hospitals, several private practices, and others.

          

               DIY Masks ready to be delivered          


Nurses at Northside Hospital with a Sewa Atlanta

          

COVID-19 Disaster Response Volunteer

In addition to the DIY initiative, Sewa volunteers have also been sending home-made Indian food to the healthcare workers in appreciation of the immense frontline work they are doing during this COVID-19 pandemic.


We sincerely thank our health care workers from the bottom of our hearts for risking their lives to protect ours. Let us join efforts in any way we can to help them at this important time!


Recommendation Regarding the Use of Cloth Face Coverings | CDC


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