News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Over 200 Upper Cumberland volunteers are sewing face masks for anyone to pick up at St. Thomas Hospitals.
Community Relations Coordinator Sam Stout said over 4,000 masks have already been made for health and safety workers.
“We’re starting with our senior citizen population and working our way down,” Stout said. “We’re now making childrens masks as well and having those free to the community. Every day we are taking 100 to 150 masks to local places to be able to distribute and they’re all getting gone within 24 hours and then we start all over again.”
This project began with a handful of volunteers from the Smithville hospital and spread to all Tennessee hospital locations and over 400 other volunteers. Stout said the hospital has partnered with the UT Extension and the Family Community Education project.
Each cotton mask takes less than 20 minutes to make, and most include internal filters. Stout said the masks are under the CDC guidelines.
“Most of the businesses are marked with a blue ribbon outside their door to let you know they have masks for free,” Stout said. “But we also have them at the ER at all of our St. Thomas hospitals and we have them there daily until they run out, so just right at the entrance. Someone [will be] sitting there with a basket full of masks and they’re free to you.”
Some masks have 3-D printed elastic bands that go around the user’s head instead of behind the ears. Stout said volunteers have dedicated time, money, and fabric into this project.
“This has been a great way to be able to put their mind in a healthy state to help their friends and neighbors and people that they’ll never see. It’s just been a win win all the way around and we’ve been very excited and honored to participate in this huge endeavor,” Stout said.
