Sew We Care is a caring community of selfless volunteers who are helping make masks for healthcare and essential workers during the Covid 19 crisis. Niswarth Seva is the principle behind our initiative and each and every member abides by it, whether they are sewing, cutting, ironing, or delivering. We are not affiliated with any major organization, our masks are never sold, only donated, and we do not accept monetary contributions. At times, individuals and Corporations have helped us out by directly shipping us fabric and supplies, however we have sustained ourselves primarily by the generous donation of new and gently used fabric from our kind-hearted community.
We maintain a spreadsheet that is shared with all our volunteers. To date, we have made and delivered over 5000 masks – Some of the hospitals we have donated to include Beth israel, MGH, MetroWest Framingham, Emerson, Norwood, Melrose, Brockton, VA in West Roxbury, Heywood in Gardner, Beverly, ….along with area nursing homes, senior centers, home healthcare centers, police officers etc.
We have about 3000 more mask requests in the pipeline, and are actively working to create these and more.
The way our community has come forward and joined hands is unbelievable. The wave that this ripple has created in our community moves us to tears and makes us believe in the inherent goodness of people. Through this initiative, we feel a deep sense of gratification and a renewed faith in humanity. This has brought hope into a seemingly hopeless time. We are sincerely indebted to each of our members and would not be where we are without them. Today the need of the hour might be sewing, but tomorrow if we are faced by a different crisis, we are positive that our Sew we Care group will rise to the occasion. We just got the exciting news that one of our members shared the video and model with people in India, where 5000 masks were made and donated by an NGO near Kolkata, with the generosity of sponsors who provided fabric. Seeing this kind of social impact being created is the biggest reward and motivation for us!
When Covid-19 started feeling real to me, a deep sense of anxiety set in. Being an A type personality, I needed to do something to channel this into positive ways. I came across a request for sewing handmade masks with very clear instructions by Emerson Hospital in Concord, and decided to act upon it. Upon successfully making one, I realized that if I had more fabric and people helping me cut and iron, I could sew a lot more per day. Out of desperation, I posted this plea for help on facebook and in my town group, and within a couple of hours I received tons of fabric donated at my doorstep. At the same time Jharna Madan, a dynamic leader in our community, reached out to me saying, “I saw your post on facebook, I want to help”. Encouraged by the generosity of so many and by Jharna’s willingness to help, I called her and we decided that I would make an instructional video and she would help spread the word. Rest is history! In a nutshell, it was my anxiety and the need to do something to help that spurred this project, but it gained wings through the generosity and vision of Jharna and all the members in our group.
Jharna Madan says, I too felt extremely anxious on the onset of Covid-19 and had a deep desire to help in some way. Just then, I came across Manisha’s post and that was it. The instructional video Manisha made along with the sewing video was shared with all our volunteers. It’s a completely collaborative, yet socially distanced, process. We created a WhatsApp and a Facebook group wherein people were encouraged to reach out to either of us for guidance and questions. Our volunteers designate themselves by ability: providing 100% cotton cloth, cutting, ironing, sewing, or delivering. Our WhatsApp group is used to communicate requests, delegate tasks, and exchange tips & tricks to work efficiently. So it’s basically an assembly line that spans across households, all connected by our collective desire to be of service through sewing. Many of our homes serve as epicenters: those providing cloth will drop off the bag on the porch, and those who cut & iron will come pick it up. Once cut and ironed, someone else is responsible for actually sewing the masks. Finally, the masks are delivered. At each step, Sew We Care volunteers practice all social distancing protocol and have not allowed that hurdle to impede their progress.
