Merced church, groups help donate nearly 8,000 masks to protect homeless from COVID-19
Gateway Community Church on Friday helped deliver close 8,000 donated face masks to the Merced County Rescue Mission, in order to help protect people who are homeless during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
The N-95 masks were made possible via donation by UCSF Medical Center with help from a variety of organizations like Scrappy Strappers and Centurion Boats.
Al Schaap, Gateway’s senior pastor, explained the masks were expired. But volunteers worked to refurbish the items by replacing the rubber straps and making them good-as-new. “They are in totally perfect condition other than that,” Schaap said.
“In the middle of this pandemic and with numbers going up so much, we have all of these groups coming together — ministry groups, a lot of volunteers — so that we can help bring some hope in the middle of so much dark time,” Schaap added.
“So I appreciate the work of Scrappy Strappers, and the ones here in town who have helped us so much with refurbishing. And (we) hope this is just something that God uses in an extraordinarily good way.”
According to the California Department of Health, the use of face coverings and masks can limit the release of infected droplets when talking, coughing, and/or sneezing.
Research has shown that people with no or few symptoms of COVID-19 can still spread the disease. The use of face coverings, combined with physical distancing and frequent hand washing, will reduce the spread of the virus, according to CDPH.
The University of Washington Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) projects the death toll from COVID-19 in the U.S. is predicted to swell to nearly 300,000 by December.
However, if most everyone in the United States would wear masks outside their home, starting immediately, that number could be reduced by nearly 66,000, according to the IHME model.
As of Sunday, 161,284 people have died from the virus in the U.S, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of Aug. 6, there have been 10,011 deaths from the virus in California, according to CDPH.
This story was originally published August 9, 2020 at 12:25 PM with the headline "Merced church, groups help donate nearly 8,000 masks to protect homeless from COVID-19."
