Masks4SLV sews masks for the Valley

By Chris Finnie

In January, local resident Lorraine Palmer grew alarmed about stories she was reading about a new, deadly virus in China. Since it seemed inevitable it would spread to the United States, given our economic ties to China, she started asking around about plans to deal with it. She was horrified to discover how ill-prepared the country, state, and local governments seemed to be. So she decided we needed to get ready on our own.

As she pointed out to the Post, the San Lorenzo Valley is a close-knit community, and we have a history of resilience in the face of all sorts of disasters from fires and floods to earthquakes and power outages. We’re good at coming together as neighbors to support each other and get through things. Because of our relative isolation and small population, we’re also often last on the list for services. So Lorraine looked to collaborate with other local groups that have proved to be ideal partners in times of disaster.

Help from Other Groups

Penny Cotter and the group she founded, SC Mask Sewers, were the first donors to the new group, Masks4SLV. Penny has been incredibly resourceful at sourcing materials and enlisting volunteers to serve the needs of Santa Cruz County. Penny’s group was overwhelmed with requests and were glad to welcome more people who sew in the Valley. The next donor was the Boulder Creek Business Association, which provided funds to buy material for local sewers from the Santa Cruz group.

Lorraine set up a Facebook group the first week in April and called me soon after to ask if I’d heard about all the groups sewing masks. I told her my friend Lee and I had been sewing for Project Mask, a national organization, and for SC Mask Sewers, as well as for friends and neighbors. Other neighbors were already sewing for other groups too. Since we’d worked together on the 2016 presidential race, we immediately started brainstorming together. With local donations to buy materials, I became the third contributor to the group and helped pay for repairs on donated sewing machines.

Help from Local People

Local people donated material almost as soon as the Facebook group went up. But Lorraine saw a need for a centralized location for donor drop-offs and deliveries of finished masks. After she scouted vacant spaces in downtown Boulder Creek, we decided the old Loch Dog space would be perfect. But the IOOF, who owns that space, had bigger plans and offered Masks4SLV as much space as we wanted upstairs in the meeting hall, which they can’t use for the time being because of the county shelter-in-place order. With all that room, Masks4SLV soon welcomed donations of irons, ironing boards, more materials, and hundreds of masks.

Coastal Computer donated a refurbished computer to the group for recordkeeping. Aum Herbs, in addition to letting us use their courtyard as our first donation space, provided hand sanitizer for volunteers interacting with the public. Tina Marie To set up a fabric cutting board at the IOOF and manned the space for several weeks. People have donated 3D printed strap holdbacks. The Santa Cruz Warriors donated a bunch of t-shirts to make ties with, and Penny gave us 108 more. Local sheet metal workers donated flexible aluminum strips which are used to custom-fit the top of a mask to your face to make them more comfortable to wear and less likely to fog your glasses.

A Sponsor for Donations

The Valley Women’s Club provided the final piece, agreeing to sponsor Masks4SLV. This not only gave us more publicity but the ability to raise funds for operating expenses. Lorraine made a proposal to them because she felt the mask effort fit in with the work they do for the community. They agreed immediately.

And We’re in Business!

With a list of open businesses obtained from the San Lorenzo Valley Chamber of Commerce, volunteers started making contact to offer and deliver masks to establishments that were interfacing with the public. We posted pictures of deliveries on Facebook to raise awareness. More people started donating and asking for masks. And many told us they feel safer with everybody masked.

Masks4SLV gave out 80 masks the first week in May. We’ve given away probably over 500 in total and will hand out another 150 on Friday, May 8 at Grey Bears—after donating 56 for their delivery volunteers. We’ve given 60 to Valley Churches United, 100 to the Community Dinner in Boulder Creek for homeless people and day laborers, and 40 to Mountain Community Resources.

For a bit of fun and inspiration, volunteers also recently placed custom sized masks on San Lorenzo Valley mascots like the Boulder Creek Welcome Bear and the Bull at Felton Covered Bridge Park. We even masked James Dean at the Brookdale Lodge! It was our way to billboard our public service campaign and to show we’re all in this together.

Here for the Long Run – Here for the Community

We don’t know how long it might take for a vaccine to be created to fight the virus. In the meantime, we’re going to need protection so that we don’t infect one another. We’ll need to find masks that are comfortable and fit right. We have to learn which masks work the best and how to care for them long term. And Masks4SLV will be there to help.

Become a volunteer with Masks4SLV: https://www.facebook.com/groups/530993977600021

Writer Chris Finnie has lived in the Santa Cruz Mountains for 25 years.