HAMPTON ROADS, Va. (WAVY) — Almost all of us have a lot of extra time on our hands right now due to the coronavirus crisis, and many people are asking how they can help.
Caroline Pendyk is spending her time behind a sewing machine, since she can’t sit behind a school desk. In two days the Kellum High School junior crafted more than 50 surgical masks.
“We picked out different patterns and then there’s like multi-colored ones so they would enjoy them they wouldn’t be just like solid or boring,” she said, adding that she hopes the masks will help healthcare workers like her mom.
“She’s been telling me how low they are on supplies, how they have to reuse their masks and how difficult it is for patients and staff to have enough masks to go around,” Caroline said. “Doing this gives me something to do and it makes me feel better as a person.”
10 On Your Side has received pictures from others doing the same across Hampton Roads.
Chesapeake Regional Medical Center told 10 On Your Side they will happily accept fabric masks. They request them as thick as possible to create a good germ barrier.
A spokesperson for Riverside told us they are working on drop off areas and will let us know the details soon. Sentara officials were meeting about donations today.
If you’re looking for other ways to help the United Way has some opportunities.
“We’re all facing a new world and we’re all trying to figure out how we support each other in this kind of crisis,” United Way of South Hampton Roads spokesperson Kelsey Mohring told 10 On Your Side.
Mohring said right now, the United Way needs help delivering meals to seniors. The United Way also created a Coronavirus Recovery Fund to help those who’ve lost their jobs and is teaming up with Volunteer Hampton Roads to identify virtual volunteer opportunities.
“So we’re still figuring out what that’s going to look like,” Mohring said, adding that it may be tutoring kids or making “house calls” to seniors via telephone.
If you want to help or if you need help, call the United Way’s hotline at (757) 858-7777 or visit their website.
