Our YOC clients have been some of the hardest hit by job losses, and the resulting threat of hunger and homelessness in the shadow of Covid 19, at the same time all Marylanders are now required to wear masks in public places, despite an acute shortage.
This inspired Identity to marshal the talent and energy of Youth Opportunity Center clients to make cloth masks, while offering a stipend for their production. Identity is providing the kits (fabric, elastic, basic sewing supplies) and produced a bilingual how-to video for 28 YOC clients to each make 40 hand-sewn cloth masks. Once produced, the masks will be machine-reinforced by staff with home sewing machines, sterilized, and then 1,120 reusable masks will be available free to other low-income Identity youth and their families.
This a win/win combination of workforce development, community activism, and public health. Read all about the mask production project here.
