Huron Shores Hospice has received two different donations recently to help supply the facility with masks to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The first donation came courtesy of Debbie Bolan, in partnership with the Hawthorne Community Clinic, who presented $971.80 in donations received by clinic patients to wear one of Debbie's homemade masks in the facility.
Debbie said she got the idea to sew masks made from HALYARD H600 medical fabric from a friend who saw a YouTube video of a doctor at the University of Florida’s department of anesthesiology.
“He saw the HALYARD H600 fabric being disposed of after sterilization of instruments and wondered why it couldn’t be used to help with the shortage of medical grade masks in the hospital,” Bolan says.
“We have had a tough year when it comes to fundraising for the hospice operating budget,” says Cheryl Cottrill, Co-Chair of Huron Shores Hospice. “This donation is so appreciated, especially this year, and will help plug a hole in our 2020 fundraising budget. We applaud Debbie’s efforts and the efforts of the Hawthorne Community Clinic to collect the money donated and provide it to the hospice. We also very much appreciate every patient at the clinic who made a donation in exchange for a mask. This is what makes our hospice truly a community owned hospice.”
The second donation came from Shirley Purdie of Kincardine, better known as ‘The Mask Lady’ around the town. Huron Shores Hospice was presented with a cheque in the amount of $6,598.50 from Shirley, who also donated $5,423.10 to the hospice from the sale of her homemade masks back in June. Her total donations to the Huron Shores Hospice now total $12,001.60. Ginny Ross is Shirley’s trusted side-kick, who at first took on the administration role of arranging for orders and payment, but also helps out with fabric and elastic cutting to help Shirley keep up with demand.
“We are absolutely thrilled with Shirley and Ginny’s contribution to our hospice fundraising efforts. They are certainly two of our Hospice Heroes. It has been a tough year for fundraising and this additional winfall could not have happened at a better time for us. We so appreciate Shirley and Ginny’s efforts to raise money in this unique way, while keeping our community safe,” says Cottrill.
You can email Ginny @bmts.com or private message her on Facebook and she will look after getting you one of Shirley's masks. Shirley says she will continue donating any profits from the masks to Huron Shores Hospice.
L to R: Malcolm and Mabel Herbert with Ginny Ross, Cathy Herbert, Huron Shores Hospice and Shirley Purdie. (Photo provided by Cheryl Cottrill, Co-Chair, Huron Shores Hospice)
