Immigrant Women Making Facemasks

A group of immigrant women in Surrey, B.C., are working together to sew cloth facemasks to help in the COVID-19 pandemic.

Clara, Wendy, Rosey, Masoomeh, Bekhita, Digna and Shiva are members of a sewing business collective called Sewmates Craft, which is part of the Intercultural Women’s Maker Society. Their Cloth Facemask Initiative came together within days after the women had their first virtual team meeting on March 25th; research was done, their sewing machines came out, patterns were created and the women started sewing masks, each from their individual homes. So far, 100 cloth facemasks have been made and donated to Mission Possible, a community economic development agency in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, and other organizations in the DTES, for distribution among the homeless in the community. Their goal: to make another 1,000 to 2,000 masks for designated care home facilities and/or homeless shelters.

Any British Columbian interested in purchasing facemasks for themselves can also do so here, with a minimum purchase of 10 masks at a cost of $125 plus delivery fee. For every 10 masks sold, an additional five will be donated to those in need via Mission Possible. —Vita Daily

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