By Cathy Edmundson
Door County (March 31, 2020) –– I hope you and your family have been able to stay safe and healthy these past few trying weeks. My name is Cathy Edmundson, and I’m a member of the Door County community (in the Baileys Harbor area).
I wanted to share details about providing home-made face masks throughout our Door County community to help in the battle against the coronavirus.
There is a new initiative in our community called Sew Masks for Door County (SMDC). You can find more about them as their efforts evolve on their FaceBook page.
I spoke with their leader this morning, so here is what is going on in as few words as I can manage.
• This group is a hub for those in Door County who have been requesting home made face masks. These are people, or groups who are not medical professionals, but find themselves still needing some protection while dealing with the public. Examples include: Door County Sheriff’s office, child care facilities, those who are preparing and delivering meals to those in need, grocery store workers, etc.
• This group leader coordinates pick-ups from those who are making home made face masks (and will supply makers with fabric if we need it, and searches for alternatives to elastic tie backs). The group leader lives in Sturgeon Bay, and picks up completed masks there several times per week (from maker front door stops). She also drives as far north as Baileys Harbor and Egg Harbor for pick-ups a couple of times per week. And she will keep me posted when her pick-ups for Baileys Harbor and Egg Harbor will take place, as my home address is now on her pick-up route. As you can imagine, this has become a consuming responsibility for the group leader, so I am doing what I can to minimize her travel and communications.
• This group leader also washes/sterilizes the collected masks, packages them, and delivers to those who have requested them.
Right now, their biggest backlog order request is for the Door County Sheriff’s office.
So, how can you help? Here’s our Call to Action:
• If you need straps for the masks, SMDC is searching and ordering various alternatives to the elastic. So, again, if you live north of Sturgeon Bay, feel free to use me as your contact, as I’m now on the regular route.
• If you are not a Facebook user, and are struggling to search for a face mask you would be comfortable sewing, feel free to contact me and we’ll find a pattern suitable to you.
• When you complete a batch of face masks, feel free to either drop them at my front door (I’ll have a plastic bin out front labeled Home Made Face Masks). Simply place them in the labeled bin. If you’d prefer, I can periodically pick up a batch of completed face masks from your front door stop.
• Feel free to use whatever face mask pattern you feel comfortable with to make your face masks (preferably, make your face masks with a pocket so that the user can slip in a filter of some type). Several workable patterns can be found on the Sew Masks for Door County FB page. Use good cotton fabric, or sateen, or sheeting for the mask. If you don’t have a supply of elastic for the straps, use bias tape, or feel free to make your own bias strips out of fabric.
• If you need fabric, and you live north of Sturgeon Bay, feel free to contact me, and I’ll get it to you out of my personal stash. Or I’ll order some from SMDC. If you live in (or near) Sturgeon Bay, you may find it easier to work through SMDC directly.
Note: There is No Minimum Count. If you can only make a few face masks, they will still go to good use. If you make more than a few face masks, that is great too. They all add up to helping someone in our community feel safer as they try their best to Stay Safe At Home up here in our beautiful Door County.
Feel free to contact me if you have further questions about how you can help. Or, better yet, check out the FaceBook page Sew Masks for Door County. ––Cathy Edmundson
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