Whenever there is a crisis in our country, there seems to be a strong desire to offer to help. Think back to Clara Barton in the Civil War, Buying Bonds in World War I, look to Rosie the Riveter in World War II, and all those Victory Gardens, No matter the emergency, the American instinct is to find a way to pitch in, people just want to help.
The current pandemic is a different kind of crisis, yet the spirit to help is alive and well. The experts agree the best way to help is to just stay home, but the urge to do something is strong, and being passive is not enough for a lot of people.
In Bedford there are many examples of Bedford being Bedford. Feeding the Soul, providing food to health care workers and first responders is one. Another truly grass roots effort is the making of masks.
The CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends everyone wear a mask when they cannot practice social distancing. The need for masks has led to many efforts throughout the country and right here in Bedford to meet the need.
I talked with Kelly Flook, from Crafting for a Cure. Kelly said that she has been a quilter for some time, but had to ask her mom about how to make masks. With a little help from her mom, she was off and running. Since she started this project she has made well over 300 masks. She charges $10 and donates all the proceeds to the Bedford Food Pantry. The company she works for will match all employee donations to charitable causes. They were matching up to 50% and, starting this July they match 100%. So far Kelly said she has donated well over $1000 to the food pantry.
Kelly also mentioned that there is a Coalition Mask Network Facebook group. This is a group putting mask makers and people who need masks together. On their page, you can see a filled request from Bedford summer school. This is a place where large organizations can request many masks, such as a school.
I talked with Becky Mantz from First Congregational Church on the Great Road. The church actually started a Mask Ministry specifically to deal with this situation. Here’s what she said: “The First Church Mask Ministry began in response to the dire situation presented by Covid-19. What began with about five individuals quickly welcomed and embraced volunteers from throughout the community and grew into a group of 34 dedicated workers.
“We have “officially” distributed 3,329 masks to 23 local and regional organizations. We have also sewn for our own families and friends and figure our actual total is well over 4,000 gifted masks. Our next and final collection day will be July 31. With masks now available from myriad sources we are winding down our sewing and moving on to the new ways we can support our community.
“As you may recall, health care workers were in desperate need of PPE this spring-the virus hit so quickly and overwhelmingly that workers were left to find adequate face coverings on their own. During those initial weeks, we reached out to organizations such as group homes, home healthcare workers, retirement facilities, etc. to offer masks to our most vulnerable populations.
“As word of our group spread we received more requests and also continued to reach out. We have provided masks throughout Bedford and, for months, have had a table offering free masks outside of First Church Congregational (25 Great Rd-next to the Police Station). The table is now located just inside the door; masks are still available. We have never charged for our masks. It has been our joy to step out in a time of crisis with care for our neighbors and communities.”
The First Parish Unitarian Universalist on the Common also had a large effort in making masks. This was not a church driven effort but rather many members in the church who took it upon themselves to help out. Some joined the Mask Ministry at the Congregational church. Other sewers took it upon themselves to create masks and distribute t0 those in need. When I reached out to First Parish I had a lot of responses highlighting the efforts of so many. A very rough and unscientific survey of the responses puts the count of masks made at well over a thousand.
Another effort was a 4-pronged initiative by the Rotary Club of Bedford to help during the pandemic. The first prong was the production of transparent face shields. The Rotary Club of Bedford (Past President Victor Tom and current President Sze-Wen Kuo) offered to help the Rotary Club of Westborough produce face shields for Milford Hospital using a clever handmade design with heavy-duty vinyl, Velcro straps, and black tape. When they realized the need was also right here in our local communities, this project grew into a much larger effort, producing over 1,200 face shields with hundreds delivered to Emerson Hospital, Lahey Clinic, VA Hospital, UMass Memorial, and to Bedford and Billerica EMTs.
At the same time, Bedford High School seniors Cole Parks and Sylvia Wolk were producing 3D-printed face shields for a New York hospital. When they learned of the Rotary effort, they asked if they could help locally through Rotary. Victor Tom provided an improved Swedish design for faster printing (suggested by a Rotarian in an adjacent district) and created a BRIC2 (Bedford Rotary Ideas Community Challenge) project to fund raw materials and provide distribution to the various local front-line medical workers, including the afore-mentioned hospitals, Bedford Fire and Police, and neighboring organizations. Through their combined efforts, over 500 3D-printed face shields were produced and delivered.
Third, three Rotarian families (Paula Gilarde, Jean Hammond, and Sze-Wen Kuo) sewed over a hundred face masks for a local Bedford church community project.
Finally, the Rotary Club of Bedford purchased $3,000 worth of local restaurant gift cards and donated them to our front-line Covid-19 workers, benefitting both restaurants and medical workers.
There is a new Facebook Group ~ Bedford, MA Mask Makers ~ working to put together mask makers and people who need them here in Bedford.
Thank you all to the many mask makers. I know there are a lot more out there. Be proud Bedford, this is just another example of our community coming together, Bedford being Bedford.
So wear a mask — and if you need one, we got you covered Bedford!
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