Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

LET'S BREATHE is a 100% volunteer-run grassroots effort to make cotton mask covers for nursing homes, clinics, hospitals - any organization accepting homemade mask covers to help in the face of an N-95 mask shortage due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak. It was started by the Allvin family, whose members quickly organized an outreach response to medical care facilities and connected with volunteers via social media.

The goal of LET'S BREATHE is to supply homemade mask covers to those in need wherever our volunteers live. Our system of getting teams running is designed to enable just about anyone in any community to start a successful LET'S BREATHE campaign of their own.

To donate to our LET'S BREATHE campaign, please go to our GoFundMe page here.

Yes! So do community clinics, nursing homes, home health providers, and other health organizations. What we make ARE NOT MASKS, but covers to put over N-95 masks to extend their useful lives, which is critical when they are in such short supply. These are not intended as replacement for N-95s or surgical masks. They are designed to hospital specifications, to be able to withstand sanitation like scrubs and therefore reused.

Some hospitals and nursing homes are even giving them to infected patients to help prevent further exposure for others. Our mask cover pattern has been approved by a local hospital, and is consistent with CDC guidance.

When a University of Maryland Medical Center representative was asked if they still needed these mask covers, she replied: "YES, YES, YES, please send them. We went through 100’s in 1 hour after arriving to hospitals. We are working hard, but the demand is so great!”

An informative article about mask making efforts in the current crisis was published recently in the New York Times.

So how to get started?

Please keep reading, and if you live in an area where Let’s Breathe is not yet active, contact us at LetsBreathInfo@gmail.com to get your own effort started quickly and easily.

To donate to Let's Breathe, please go to our GoFundMe page here.

We have responded to healthcare organizations' requests for these masks in northern Virginia, Washington DC, Maryland, Delaware, western Washington, Arizona, California, and Florida (see our state-by-state donations here). We are working with hospitals, community clinics, elder care facilities, and home health care providers. We continue to receive requests, so the list changes almost daily!

• A contact at University of Maryland Medical Center confirmed their urgent need this way: "YES, YES, YES, please send them. We went through 100’s in 1 hour after arriving to hospitals. We are working hard, but the demand is so great!”

• A representative of northern Virginia’s National Home Health Care told us, "Our mask supply is dwindling, and patients have begun to refuse to let nurses come into their home to treat because they are fearful of the virus. Unfortunately, that may land them back in the hospital where they are at much more at risk for the virus, not to mention bed unavailability greatly increases fatality rate... Any masks you could donate for asymptomatic staff and patients to protect themselves would be greatly appreciated!"

If you live in an area where LET'S BREATHE is not yet active, you can get your own team going and join the growing network of active LET'S BREATHE teams around the country. Visit our New Teams page to learn everything you need ot get going.

We thank you for your willingness to help! However, if you are currently sick or have been exposed to anyone with coronavirus symptoms (fever, shortness of breath, dry cough, etc.), DO NOT make mask covers at this time. We must avoid contamination of supplies, patients, healthcare workers, and other volunteers.

Yes! We need monetary donations in order to purchase materials to sew the mask covers. A Let's Breathe GoFundMe page is active and updated often. Please consider making a contribution, and visit the page frequently for updates.

Unfortunately we cannot accept any other homemade items at this time.

Mostly because the word "sewers" made us giggle when we saw it in writing. But more seriously, even if the pronunciation is different, we'd prefer not to be associated with anything that is not hygienic.

Great! Here's how to get started:

1. Be willing to start or join a group in your area; there are probably others who will want to help and will look to you for guidance.

2. Look for volunteers on easy-to-use social media networks like Nextdoor.com.

3. Look for financial donations on easy-to-use fundraising platforms like GoFundMe.com.

4. Find healthcare organizations in your community in need. To locate ones nearest you, try online resources like Yelp!, or search for nursing homes on Medicare.gov, and you will quickly find health centers very near your home.

5. Organize your volunteers to 1) buy materials, 2) prepare sewing kits for sewists, 3) sew the masks, 4) sanitize and bag the masks, 5) deliver the masks, 6) track donations and expenses, and 7) share updates with your volunteers and donors.

THAT'S IT! Head over to our Tools for Teams page to get step-by-step help.

Masks should be shared with your local LET'S BREATHE coordinator to verify that they meet the needs of your community healthcare providers.

Hospitals have indicated that their primary concern is limiting the number of people dropping things off so that they can limit potential spread of the virus.

Typically, team leads work in advance with their contacts to make sure all donations meet their needs.