Sew Kindhearted! Girlpreneurs Who Are Stepping Up for Others in Need
These young girl entrepreneurs are shifting gears and helping out in this time of need.
Times are not just changing, they’ve changed. The latest CDC guidelines now officially recommend everyone wear cloth face coverings when outside to help stop the spread of coronavirus. And just like some pantry essentials (we’re looking at you hand sanitizer and toilet paper), face masks are in high demand but low inventory.
We are so proud to highlight three young girlpreneurs who’ve adapted their startups to help out those in need during these challenging times. They’ve shifted from sewing their products to sewing masks for frontline hospital workers and at-risk groups.
Sara Sews
Sara Robinson of Sara Sews who we profiled in our first book, paused her apron and party bunting production and shifted to face mask output. She has sewn over 2,000 fabric masks and donated them to several hospitals, assisted living facilities, UPS pilots, and doctors in Georgia. Sara was named a Hometown Hero by her Mayor and City Council and was interviewed on her local news. She also recently starting selling these stylish masks on her site so check it out and order masks for your family or for healthcare workers in your community.
Stitches by Charlotte
Featured on one of our blog posts for her beautiful IG feed, 12-year-old Charlotte Gould knows from personal experience that surgeries can be scary for kids. After recovering from several surgeries herself, she started a business at age seven and put her sewing talents to good use. As the CEO of Stitches by Charlotte, Charlotte creates confidence-boosting cuddly dolls that accompany kids during hospital treatments. Now she’s giving back to the healthcare community by donating sewn face masks to hospital heroes. For the full scoop, watch Charlotte as she eloquently explains to her local news station how she adds pockets to her masks for extra hospital-grade filter protection.
Thousand Bamboos
Artsy and crafty 14-year-old Kiana Fong of Thousand Bamboos makes handmade items and partners with a non-profit organization, Thousand Smiles. Together, they create care packages for kids confined in hospitals and donate to a fund for children too ill to attend school. To meet today’s urgent need for protective gear, Kiana recently added DIY masks to her lineup of handcrafted wares. And she has given all of her handmade masks to clinics, hospitals, and nursing homes. Check out Thousand Bamboo’s recent Facebook posts to see how Kiana’s donated masks have brightened up healthcare workers’ days and encouraged other crafters to help out, too.
We’re so proud of these girls! They’re impressive young entrepreneurs who roll with the punches and do their best to solve problems faced by the community. They’re also great role models for the girlpreneur in your family or social circle. If your girlpreneur would like to pitch in and start making face masks, even if she doesn’t own a sewing machine, she can follow tutorials from Charlotte or check out this site which has sewing instructions as well as links to donate the masks to those in need.
Stay safe everyone.
