GREENEVILLE – As costume director for Tusculum University Arts Outreach, Erin Schultz is accustomed to using her sewing machine to turn fabric into dynamic clothing for actors to wear on stage.
Erin Schultz sews a mask.
With the coronavirus bringing to the forefront the need for people to protect themselves, Schultz is using her creativity for another type of fashion. She has developed about 300 masks for people in a variety of circumstances to wear so they can prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
“Since I am blessed with the skill of making clothing items, it is my moral obligation to put it to another good use during this period,” Schultz said. “I have lots of friends in health care and know many people in the community who will benefit from the masks. I am pleased to do my part and am fortunate to have a great resource at Tusculum that is providing the material I need for the masks.”
Schultz is able to impact the community and other parts of country because of the plethora of fabric available in Tusculum’s costume shop. The university’s theater program receives many donations of fabric, and some of the surplus is now being used as a way to help people in a different way.
Erin Schultz sits at her sewing machine with some of her masks nearby.
Using dimensions she found on Facebook, Schultz has dedicated 8-10 hours a day since Friday, March 20, to sewing the masks. She is using two layers of cotton in the masks and including some cheerful colors to make them less scary to children. The masks are helpful in providing some protection for people who might not have access to an N95 mask, she said.
Schultz and her husband, Steve, are delivering masks to people in the community who are unable or reluctant to leave their residence because of the coronavirus. She is also shipping them to people – thanks in part to financial donations she has received – with the mask in a bag along with a note written by her daughter instructing the recipient to wash a mask before using it.
In addition to supporting local residents, such as nurses, she has also sent some to a medical clinic in Chilhowie, Virginia; the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt; and to New York. She also provided one to a friend who has a family member in hospice care and would be unable to visit without one.
Here are some of the masks Erin Schultz has created.
“If there is anything good about the coronavirus, it is that people are looking out for each other even more now,” Erin said. “They want to help and step up wherever they are needed. This has proven to me that even though I am not a health care worker, I can make the situation better for others, and I am grateful for that.”
Dr. Scott Hummel, Tusculum’s president, commended Erin for her actions.
“Erin’s initiative and compassion are hallmarks of the Tusculum values to help those in need,” Dr. Hummel said. “The generous use of her time and skill tangibly helps protect those in our community at an important time. We are also thankful to the community, which has previously donated the material Erin is using for the masks and enabled her to pay it forward.”
Anyone who would like to request a mask can email Schultz at eschultz@tusculum.edu.