My name is Olivia...

Together, Olivia, her siblings and cousins are making face masks and this is how it all got started.

When COVID-19 started to become known in March of 2020, people were scared, hospitals were quickly becoming overwhelmed and personal protective equipment "PPE" was in short supply.  I retired as a registered nurse less than two years ago. Most of my friends and some family were still working as nurses caring for patients. I was torn about what to do, but going back to work was not an option for me because Bruce and I were currently working more than full time on our farm and also raising a foster child. 

Soon, I was hearing about the shortages of masks and other supplies that nurses and other medical workers were needing. After speaking with several nurses, I realized that they were scared and worried about running out of what they needed. It was then that I had the idea to make and donate masks to hospitals, specifically Brigham and Women's and also South Shore Hospital Birthing Units. Both places that I had worked. 

I posted on social media that I was looking for any quilters that would be willing to donate scrap fabric that I would repurpose into masks. Total strangers and many friends were bringing me fabric. It was amazing. Other supplies, like elastic and thread were beginning to run out, so I started stocking up.  I was ordering fabric and other supplies in bulk and sewing most of the time.

Soon, doctors from other hospitals and people from nursing homes were calling for masks. It was getting crazy and hard to keep up with.  My granddaughter Eva, came to help me for almost two weeks. My husband Bruce also helped pitch in when things got really busy and time was running out on some of the requests. One facility was almost totally out of masks and requested that we give them fifty to meet their immediate needs.  Total strangers were calling for masks.  We did what we could to meet the demands.

In all, we donated over five hundred masks to hospitals, churches, family, friends, police, firefighters and total strangers.  It was overwhelming but also totally awesome!  It felt so good to help out.

In July, my grandchildren visited from North Carolina.  It was then that my granddaughter, Olivia, asked if I would teach her how to sew the masks.  She had already been learning to sew with her mom and had started making clothes for herself.  She was a quick study and caught on right away.  She was very attentive to detail and the quality of the final product.  I was totally impressed!  Before long, her siblings wanted to be part of the endeavor…. That is how this all got started!  I thought they would drop it pretty quickly, but no, they have really taken it on and making masks daily ***(BE SURE TO SCROLL TO THE BOTTOM AND SEE FUNNY PICTURES OF THEM IN ACTION!)

So, as long as the supplies are available to us and we can get the masks done, we will be selling them from this website and in person to those that want them.  FOR EVERY FIVE MASKS SOLD, WE WILL DONATE ONE TO A WORTHY CAUSE.

We hope you enjoy what our family of little entrepreneurs has put together!  This is a life lesson for them and a teaching opportunity that is keeping them learning and busy doing something so meaningful.

Terry Sentas