San Francisco Opera Creates Masks For Essential Workers

San Francisco Classical Voice has reported that the San Francisco Opera is helping to create masks for health professionals and other essential workers.

Read the full story HERE.

When the company was put on pause due to the health crisis, the production department sprung into action and delivered necessary items including respirator masks, gloves, goggles, face-shields, full-body jumpsuits/coveralls, shoe covers, and cleaning products to UCSF Mt. Zion.

SFO Costume Director Daniele McCartan shard that to date, the costume shop has made and distributed over 6,000 three-ply masks. Much of the fabric for the masks has came from the costume shop's stocks, including extra materials from productions of The Marriage of Figaro, Girls of the Golden West, and The Mother of Us All.

SFO General Director Matthew Shilvock and Costume Shop Manager Jai Alltizer said, "The masks being made are 3-layer masks, which means that they have an internal filter layer made of pellon, sandwiched between two cotton layers - the outside layer is a tightly woven cotton that keeps most particles out, and the inside layer is made out of soft but sturdy kona cotton.

Given the huge mask demand, the pellon is very hard to obtain, but as soon as McCartan came up with the idea of the masks, Alltizer called one of the wholesale suppliers and secured as large a supply as possible.

These masks - made utilizing guidelines from a local firm Make Me PPE (a great local organization made up of stitchers and sewers making PPE) - can be used by healthcare workers and are being delivered to places where the need is greatest, including hospitals, fire departments, and elder-care homes. The plan is to start our distribution in San Francisco and then extend further afield if possible."

Check out the full story HERE.