THE OUTLAWS FACE-SHIELD INITIATIVE
First, I'm sorry that I've been delinquent in writing. I've been a tad busy helping my brothers in-law out with a project. You see at the onset of COVID-19, my two brothers in-law started an initiative where they were getting face shields to people on the front-lines.
I should mention that we call ourselves the OUTLAWS because all three of us are married to siblings. At the family gatherings you can usually catch us three commiserating about one thing or another. I think very highly of my two brother in-laws, not that I have a shortage of brothers but it's always nice to have more people to love!
So at the beginning of COVID-19, there was a serious shortage of face shields, and many gaps in availability. Both Rob and Steve have 3D printers and found a design that was compatible with healthcare and got to it. Eventually the printing would take up any or all of their spare time and this is when I stepped in. I soon became the 'communications coordinator'. This came at the right time for me, it gave me a sense of purpose at a time where I was very lonely for my family, it distracted me so much that I soon forgot how lonely I was! I was phoning the nursing/care homes to see if they needed any shields and how many? I would organize pick up and drop off, of said Face shields for them. I spoke with many grateful administrators who were in dire straits worrying that their back-orders would not get in on time. I eventually would be dealing with shelters, agencies of all stripes that feed the hungry, the hurt, the homeless, young and old and we got shields out to these folks working these front-lines too. Eventually we had a lovely lady, Linda who makes a career out of volunteering during normal times, join us. She was so happy to become our delivery person. For her it filled the void of all those volunteer hours she was missing. She did it all socially distant, by leaving things on door steps, or dropping in lobbies etc. For us, it freed up our time to get more orders ready for more people. So far we have donated over 800 Face-shields! I don't tell you all this to brag, I tell you because I'm proud of us! We helped so many and we did it from the safety of our home, technically Linda did it from the safety of her car!
What I am really happy to report is that we are winding it down. We started this to fill the gaps, and the gaps have been filled. The industry is caught up and doing a great job of getting supplies where needed. We never planned to make a business of making shields, we all have regular jobs or other interests to pursue, and now we can get back to that. We still have a few orders that we will fill and if theres a need, we'll still help out when needed but we are officially winding down. So ladies and gents, I should have more time to write from now on! No excuses.
So next time you see Rob or Steve, shake their hand (if we ever can do that again) and thank them for stepping up when the need was there. I'm very proud of them and I'm sure their families are too.
This fight is not over, we still need to wash our hands, stay home, stay safe, cover our mouths when coughing and for the love of all things great, please be kind to the people working in stores, dr offices, or anywhere else. They are stressed enough, they don't need petty whining!