Kiya Tomlin, the wife of Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin, is making cloth masks to donate to local hospitals as health care workers battle the coronavirus pandemic.
Tomlin, who is a clothing designer and suspended plans to finish her spring collection, is making 500 masks per week along with four other team members, ESPN reported Friday.
“When I started it, I was like, we couldn’t finish our spring collection, so when we’re sitting at home doing nothing, we can sew this until it’s time to go back to work,” she said. “I didn’t realize how fast and big the demand was going to be where now we have to deliver. Masks can be made. We make masks now.”
Tomlin asked the Allegheny Health Network if they would be interested in Tomlin’s masks and when they expressed interest she got working on the items. She said she initially thought about making N95 masks but realized those would have to be specifically manufactured, according to ESPN.
Her team is making masks from cotton and later she said she received a donation from JOANN Fabrics. She said each of the masks take about eight minutes to make and her team made 300 masks the first week and 500 the second week.
ROGER GOODELL: NFL MOVING FORWARD WITH VIRTUAL FORMAT FOR DRAFT AMID CORONAVIRUS SHUTDOWNS
“We’re so used to using the industrial machines that it’s a little bit of a transition to go back to using a home machine,” Tomlin said. “When you use an industrial machine, a lot of it is automatic, like the thread clipping or the lifting of the levers with a knee. It’s like a full body experience. As opposed to the home machine where everything is on top of the table.”
Tomlin told the Steelers’ team website the response has been very good but the need for masks is abundant.
“People are excited we are donating them,” Tomlin said. “My friends who initially said don’t bother if they aren’t an N95 mask, when they got back from vacation and went back to work realized what was going on and texted me and asked me if they could have masks. I was like wow. Something is better than nothing. That has been what the real shocker is.
“From watching the news, you don’t know if you can grasp how much the need is. You hear we need ventilators and personal protective equipment. The news acts like they are stocking up for what is to come. But from the requests, I am hearing the shortage is here and we haven’t gotten to the surge yet.
JAMEIS WINSTON TIES KNOT WITH GIRLFRIEND AT HOME AFTER CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC POSTPONES LARGER CEREMONY
“Once it got public that we were making these, we got inquiries from outside of Pittsburgh from medical staffs. The police department stopped by and asked for masks.”
Tomlin said they’re not selling the masks just yet.
“I have a feeling we are going to have to wear these and people are going to need them. We are going to have to sell them at some point soon,” she said.
