East Hampton volunteers with sewing machines are turning donated fabric into 1,600 protective masks outfitted with surgical-grade filters for East Hampton health care workers, first responders, and essential personnel in the town and village.
Ilissa Meyer of Northwest Woods organized the effort, drawing inspiration from a similar one in Montauk spearheaded by Bonnie Brady. For fabric, Ms. Meyer turned to the Ladies Village Improvement Society of East Hampton, of which she is a longtime member.
As of Monday, she had 18 sewers (10 from the L.V.I.S.), 6 cutters, 17 transport people, and 10 women working the phones to help figure out who needs what and how many.
The masks will have MERV-16 filters, which are hand-washable in warm water and can be machine dried for 15 minutes.
The team is using a pattern created by Donna Matlock of Montauk, who also posted a how-to video on YouTube for volunteers. "I feel as if God sent me on a mission to help make masks for my community," Ms. Matlock said.
They are 9 by 7 inches with two pleats, and they fit over the whole nose and mouth with elastic or ribbons to go around the head instead of over the ears. Ribbons make them adjustable. The aim was to produce 100 masks by Tuesday and at least 300 more by Friday. The ultimate goal is 1,600 masks.
The filter material arrived on Friday night and was cut that evening, then the sewers all received their first batch of mask material, each in a Ziploc bag: two pieces of cotton, one filter, and four ribbons (the elastic had not arrived yet) and got to work.
"Our first set of masks is going to the Retreat," Ms. Meyer reported yesterday.
Ms. Meyer got in touch with Anne Thomas, the president of the L.V.I.S., with a list of things she needed and was allowed to go to its headquarters to sort through the fabric she was offered, any that was not priced to be sold. Ms. Meyer and her team have been getting cotton material from a small business in Kansas, and the elastic and ribbon wherever they can find them.
Ms. Meyer, whose background is in business and who runs her husband’s large animal veterinary practice, put her team together with the help of Lynn King, Wendy Serkin, and Cathy Walsh, whom she calls “my rocks.”
Even though a couple of people have given Ms. Meyer personal checks to help offset the expense, she has been shouldering it largely herself. Donations, as well as more sewers, cutters, drivers, and phone people would be welcomed, she said. Those interested can email [email protected].
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Correction: An earlier version of this article misstated the L.V.I.S.'s involvement in the mask-making effort. The project was initiated by Ms. Meyer, not the L.V.I.S., but the society has donated fabric and helped her spread the word.