Thanks to the individual efforts of all our volunteers, genuine and profound contributions have been made to our team. Together, we’ve crossed several milestones, including receiving hundreds in donations on our Kickstarter campaign, banding multiple high school students across Maryland together, and donating over 10,000 masks. Even today, I am still surprised by the willingness of our volunteers to step up to difficult tasks. I also understand that I’ve undoubtedly under-estimated the potential of our group and the sincerity to which they’ve chosen to cut out fabric or sew together masks. It’s something that I now know is far from reality.
In particular, someone who has continually refuted this presumption is Joelle L., a current freshman at Richard Montgomery High School. After launching our Kickstarter campaign, Joelle was one of the first students to reach out to me over email, excited to begin volunteering in any way possible.
Initially, she began on our team by cutting out elastic and fabric. Both were jobs that were tedious yet demanded precision. A wrong cut in fabric could mean wasting valuable resources that could cost hefty sums, and even worse, a substandard cut in fabric could mean an improperly fitted mask, something that would not be able to be donated. Though her initial involvement was limited, they were immensely significant. They loosened the burden on other fabric cutters, streamlining the mask-making process and ultimately making it more efficient.
Yet in late July, a new circumstance was introduced. Shortly after confirming a finalized donation process with Howard University Hospital in DC, I realized that our output for masks was lacking. Though substantial, there was a definite sense of guilt within our team for reducing our biweekly capacity; while we would previously send over 300-400 masks to each facility, the addition of the Howard University Hospital slashed our donations to only 150-200 masks.
Even though coordinators would reassure our team that a reduced capacity was nonetheless beneficial, there was a looming sense of urgency and desire to sustain our donation numbers. Thus, at our next Zoom meeting — which we would hold every other week to check in with volunteers, make new announcements, and introduce new volunteers — I asked if anyone was interested in learning how to use a sewing machine.
From personal experience, learning how to operate a sewing machine took at least four hours of online videos, not to mention the several instances where the machine broke down, strings came loose, and the needle on the machine snapped. I made it clear that teaching oneself how to use the machine was a time consuming, all encompassing process that could take weeks to master. I wasn’t expecting anyone to volunteer, yet my theory was immediately disapproved when Joelle took up the offer and volunteered to meet the growing demand from the hospitals.
I was grateful and within just a few weeks, Joelle produced her first batch of masks. She soon became a consistent and reliable stream for masks, dropping them off in my garage every week. Regardless of quantity, her devotion to our cause ignites my own desire to sew even more as well.
Even today, when Joelle is unable to deliver her masks, she sends me an email or text, explaining her situation in depth. Though seemingly unnecessary, these small gestures demonstrate her dedication, perseverance, and ultimately her benevolent nature to constantly provide something to the community.
I am sincerely thankful for her enthusiasm and proud of her new learned skills. Just as I am encouraged by Joelle’s actions, I hope others are motivated to continually strive to max our output every donation. Joelle reminds all of us that every contribution has the potential to create a significant difference.
Thank you Joelle!
November 16th, 2020