With new requirements that Bay Area residents wear face coverings when outside the house, citizens are stepping up.
One local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution is sewing masks to donate to local organizations. Many businesses and non-profit groups were caught flat footed by the swift change in rules. Particularly after health officials initially said facemasks were not necessary or helpful in preventing COVID-19 spread.
“While our members are doing their part to slow the spread of the virus by staying at home, they wanted to do more to give back to those working hard to keep their communities healthy and safe,” said Denise Doring VanBuren, DAR President General.
Santa Clara’s Chapter of DAR has been sewing masks for a number of essential workers. Santa Clara Chapter member Mary Kay Davis has sewed to honor her grandmother, a nurse during the 1918 flu epidemic. Davis created and donated 50 masks to the Bill Wilson Center last week.
The Chapter as a whole has sewn and donated more than 1,300 masks as of early this week, with more on the way. Nationwide, DAR chapters have sewn and donated more than 150,000 masks, as of Monday.