Along with the rest of spring athletes, sophomore Vivian Kalb was disappointed when school activities were halted due to health concerns regarding COVID-19.

It meant she would miss out on what she enjoyed most about track – the atmosphere of competing and being surrounded by her friends. 

However, she quickly changed her saddened mindset to take charge of the world’s current situation, planning to use her newly-acquired undesignated time as an advantage. 

“I was feeling sorry for myself, but then I realized that this was a bigger issue than any small inconvenience that it was causing me. People all around the world are getting sick and dying,” Kalb said.

After hearing about people who started creating their own face masks as a result of the shortage, Kalb gathered all of the extra fabric in her house. Unsure of her abilities at first, she began to attempt to sew masks from a pattern. 

She was successful and adapted the personal goal of executing 15-30 masks a week. The finished product is taken to a local dry cleaner to be thoroughly cleaned and distributed to medical offices and nursing homes. Her plan is to continue the project until the virus declines or she runs out of fabric. 

“I feel like this was a small contribution I could make,” Kalb said. 

Even though each mask takes about 30 minutes to complete, Kalb views sewing as a resourceful stress reliever. 

She credits her sewing skills to her grandmother who would make Halloween costumes for Kalb and her brother and taught Kalb when she was young. 

During a chaotic period full of need, Kalb utilizes her talents to alleviate distress one mask at a time.