Paying it forward, one mask at a time
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States in early 2020, people immediately stepped into action. Whether it was health care professionals on the front lines, researchers in labs looking for cures, or everyday people trying to do their best to help out a neighbor, most people were eager to lend a helping hand.
As the pandemic spread, protective mask mandates became commonplace throughout the world, and in Harris County, residents are required to wear a mask when entering stores, restaurants, or places of business. ForLinh Trinh，计划经理Summer Research Programat McGovern Medical School, this presented the perfect opportunity to help out.
“流感大流行的形势、我做不到ith my normal hobbies, so I came up with the idea of making masks and involved my two girls and my mom in the process. We started out making masks for the community at first, then we shifted gears to make masks for in-state college students as they were getting ready to head off to school,” she explained.
Trinh and her family began making masks from supplies they had around their home, creating more than 150 masks from their personal materials. Once stores began to restock supplies in the spring, Trinh used her own money, raised from her sales of other handmade goods at previous Employee Relations Committee Arts and Crafts events, to purchase more supplies.
特林说：“我开始出售定制的钩针，手套，手套，婴儿用品和杯架。”“当我开发网球肘时，我转向烘焙 - 自2013年以来一直在做的爱好 - 作为我筹款的主要来源。烘焙和设计有机生日和婚礼蛋糕一直是我最大的喜悦，今天收集的资金已用于我的面具项目。”
特林（Trinh）的艺术和慈善机构灵感来自她一生的两个方面，她以女孩的身份移民到美国和已故的祖父。特林说，当她的家人在1970年代后期首次到达时，他们只带着衣服就来到休斯敦，并从社区的不同地区获得了帮助。她的祖父表示感谢的方式是在小学上为小型委员会绘画壁画，并免费为社区进行艺术项目。外围beplay她说，她记得他的艺术是他回馈他的最佳方式。
“When I realized that I have the gift of creativity from my late grandfather, I started to explore options of how I could pay it forward to the community,” she said. “With the pandemic situation, I couldn’t help but think of ways to get masks to those who are in need. I had the resources available, and I was able to tie things together and make it work.”
A true family affair, Trinh said her entire family participated in the mask making. Her mother, a retired master seamstress who was a custom drape maker, handled all of the sewing. Trinh said it was her stress reliever and something to look forward to every day. When the sewing was finished, Trinh would drive to Katy to pick up the masks, where she and her two daughters would assemble the elastic fittings and bag each mask with an instruction guide.
“I would call my mom, and we would talk for hours about new designs, how to make it more fitting and comfortable for people to wear,” Trinh said. “The more comfortable and breathable the mask, the more likely people would want to wear them. Being the perfectionist that she is, she continuously critiques her own designs. The entire project has brought us all closer to each other and is time well spent.
总共，特林（Trinh）和她的家人制作了800多个口罩，并分发了450多个面具，并计划在未来几周内分发其余的面具。大多数口罩已被送往大休斯顿地区周围的家人，朋友，邻居和各种诊所，但是该家庭已将口罩送往奥斯汀，达拉斯，路易斯安那州，加利福尼亚州，纽约，佛罗里达州，甚至澳大利亚。
特林说：“我正在尽我所能为社区做出贡献，只要有能力，我将继续执行各种项目以支持我们的当地。”“当然，我可以坐下来什么都不做，但是我会没有实现。我希望我的生活意味着什么。我想向我的女孩们展示，无论您的野心多大或小，您都可以通过伸出援助之手来改变某人的生活。”
特林继续捐赠面具，甚至她的一些烘焙食品，以帮助UCSC教育奖委员会在UTHealth“通过流感射击”的UCSC教育奖委员会（1851 Crosspoint Ave.）举行的活动。要从Trinh购买烘焙食品，并为未来的慈善项目提供资金，请访问她FacebookandInstagram页面。