Boise sewists take to their machines to make hundreds of masks as CDC recommendation changes
In response to calls from hospitals and other entities around the country, home sewers have been revving up their sewing machines, rummaging through their quilting scraps, ordering elastic by the yard, and filling a need for people’s safety — and a need to be actually, physically doing something useful during the coronavirus pandemic.
Sewers in Treasure Valley are part of that movement. And they have been, even before wearing masks was recommended by health officials.
“My theory was that if I made hundreds and they never got used because they weren’t needed, great,” says Katherine Shaughnessy, a textile artist in Boise. “That would be ideal.
“And now we’re being told to wear them anyway.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention only recently changed its recommendation, now suggesting that people wear cloth masks when they go out in public to help slow the spread of COVID-19, the diseased caused by the coronavirus.
Shaughnessy is part of Boise Sewists, a private group on Instagram. And they’re not the only ones.
“Grassroots. Ground up. Thread by thread,” says Boise Guerrilla Mask Makers on their Instagram photos. “We cannot be stopped.”
They are among an uncountable number of groups who have formed between friends or on social media, discussing fabric, patterns and supplies.
“People are making them in batches,” Shaughnessy says in a phone interview. “And then they’ll give 10 or 50 to a friend of a friend who knows somebody at a hospital — you know what I mean? It’s sort of just an underground thing in a way.”
Since the CDC recommendation, however, there’s been an upsurge in the need for masks.
On Monday, Saint Alphonsus began accepting donations of homemade masks, which will be used by employees in non-patient care roles. Doctors, nurses and registration folks who are in direct patient contact will continue to wear professionally-manufactured personal protective equipment, said Mark Snider, Saint Al’s spokesman, in an email. The hospital has a webpage with its requirements for hand-sewn masks.
St. Luke’s Health Care System is not using hand-sewn masks, but has a webpage about how to donate other equipment. It provides a link for donating cloth masks to the United Way.
There isn’t really a central clearinghouse to connect makers of masks with people or organizations needing them, but it’s clear the need is there.
Treasure Valley Facebook groups pop up to help out
The Idaho Covid 19 Mutual Aid Group on Facebook has 22,400 members. In a post about hand-sewn masks, there’s more than 170 requests.
Treasure Valley Medical Mask Makers group, also on Facebook, has about 1,500 members and has sewn 5,000 masks as of last weekend — and have a backlog of 2,000 requests.
“They’re going to Ashley Manor, retirement homes, doctors’ offices, pharmacies, medical staff that reached out asking for two to 10,” says Tosha Jones, member and administrator of the Facebook page. The group has donated 2,000 masks to Saint Alphonsus.
The group started a little more than two weeks ago. “Not very long, but it feels like a long time,” she says.
The group produces about 500 masks a day. “We’re just sewing our fingers off right now,” she added.
Interfaith Sanctuary is beginning to require masks for all of its guests, so it is in need, says shelter director Jodi Peterson. There’s a national organization sewing masks for farmworkers, and a group of sewers started by Boise School District educators.
When she sits down at her sewing machine, Shaughnessy says she’s sad that there’s a need for things like masks and social isolating. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.
“But then I’m hopeful — because I know I’m not the only one. I know there are people out there (sewing) on their kitchen tables all over this country — and elsewhere. It’s an international thing that’s happening.”
This story was originally published April 7, 2020 at 3:54 PM.
