Baltimore County Woman Uses Sewing Talents To Make Masks For Those In Need During Coronavirus Pandemic
PIKESVILLE, Md. (WJZ) -- Community members continue to come together during the coronavirus pandemic to help out in any way they can.
A Pikesville woman who has a knack for sewing has been doing her part by hand-making masks to donate to people in need.
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"I retired in December and I just became obsessed. I couldn't stop," Marilyn Blank, of Pikesville, said.
All from the basement of her home in Pikesville, for the past three months, Blank has been hard at work hand-making dozens of face masks a day.
"I think I started sewing when I was about 8-years-old," she said. "I used to make doll clothes."
Blank has sewed just about everything from pants to dresses, but this is the first time she's ever put her skills to the test to make masks.
"My daughter lives in Sparks. I got a text or email from a nurse in Sparks saying, 'Can anyone make masks for Kennedy krieger hospital?' So I had some fabric at home, and my daughter had fabric at home, so we both started."
What started as a mother-daughter project quickly turned into a new quarantine hobby for Blank.
"I feel like it's my contribution," she said. "They're not 95's, but they protect people and people can wear them."
And with some fabric donations from community members, since March, Blank has hand-made a total of 1,630 face masks.
Now that masks are part of the "new normal", it's a win-win for Blank, since she gets to do what she loves while helping our community heal.
"It makes me feel good," Blank said.
Blank has donated masks not only to Kennedy Krieger Institute, Northwest Hospital and the University of Maryland Medical System, but also at local food drives.
She said she doesn't plan on slowing down anytime soon.
"I feel as long as the coronavirus is around and I still have the urge to sew, I'll keep doing it," Blank said.
For the latest information on coronavirus go to the Maryland Health Department's website or call 211. You can find all of WJZ's coverage on coronavirus in Maryland here.
