By Jonah Bryson
There has been no shortage locally of people pitching in to produce masks to combat COVID-19.
Saniél Atkinson-Grier, a Parkland athlete, had the plans of a lifetime this coming summer. She was positioned to compete in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Instead, unexpectedly caught in the midst of a deadly pandemic, Saniél found herself quarantined—like many of us—rather than celebrating her achievements halfway around the world.
“I was only a week away from traveling to Australia to start my competition season when the pandemic began to spread,” she said.
Now, Saniél is racing against the clock to produce face-masks, with the help of her mother, Sandra Bryan-Grier.
“Rachel Maddow had a story about how healthcare workers have little-to-no PPE, and how they were struggling to find resources,” Saniél said “The next day, I went to Joann Fabrics and bought all of the materials.”
From the very first stitch to the final iron, Saniél and her mother make a dedicated team. “My mom is my best friend,” she said, “We … do everything together!”
“Every day we turn on some music and get into the zone,” shared Sandra, profoundly proud of her daughter. “We are so accustomed to the process, that we now can make up to 35 masks a day. It makes me feel blessed to know that we are able to do something to help our community and healthcare workers.”
With nearly 6,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Broward County, as of May 10, the role that face masks play in preventing viral spread is paramount.
‘Maskateers’ mobilize
Rhonda Nissensohn, the mother of a nurse on the front lines, received a call from her daughter in March. The daughter was concerned for her colleagues, who were being assigned a single mask — designed to safely last only a few hours — per week.
At the time, Rhonda went online and posted an ad seeking volunteers to start fabricating masks. Support from folks around the community proved to be nothing less than inspiring. Within an hour, eight women had signed up to sew, others to iron and cut fabric. They called themselves the ‘Maskateers’.
In a matter of days, 70 masks were being shipped to her daughter’s hospital in Virginia Beach. Rhonda added, “after we did this for my daughter, we said, let’s keep doing this for first responders.”
On average, they make 100 masks using a single queen-sized bed sheet. “We are a well-oiled machine,” she said. The Maskateers have now produced over 1,400 surgical masks, each donated to workers on the frontlines.
“The one thing we all said we’re looking forward to when this is finally over, is getting together and finally meeting each other, face-to-face!” Rhonda said.
Parkland boutique takes up mask making
Jamie Tobol, the owner of Parkland’s Jatem Boutique, was preparing her shop for the busiest season of the year when COVID-19 struck.
“Nothing could prepare us for this,” she expressed. “The last few months have been very challenging for all of us. To suddenly shut down is devastating.”
Just like many families up-and-down the coasts of Florida, Jamie is now having to juggle between homeschooling her children, and running a small business during tremendous economic hardship.
In light of the pandemic, Jatem Boutique decided to partner with Joy Vava, a Los Angeles-based designer, to produce and sell facemasks. This effort has helped the factory workers — who would normally manufacture the boutique’s clothing — stay employed.
Jamie hopes that by providing the community with “cute” and fashionable face masks, people might be more encouraged to wear them to stop the spread.
To order masks from Jatem Boutique, visit @jatemboutique on Instagram.
To order masks from Saniél Atkinson-Grier and her mother, Sandra Bryan-Grier, visit their shop on Etsy: lgndry.etsy.com.
If you are a first responder in need of free masks, or if you know first responders in need, please reach out to the Maskateers: