The world has been rocked by the coronavirus.  We have been, too.  Two weeks ago, we planned to import masks from our sewing center in Nepal.  They were destined for hospitals, senior centers, school districts (for food service workers), homes for children recovering from chemotherapy, and more. 

Those will all be fulfilled, but not immediately.  The governments of both Kenya and Nepal have placed bans on all international flights into and out of the country.  Not until those bans are lifted can we bring out the masks.  The people in the country are equally discomfited, because they rely on the employment from sewing to be able to live.  And their existence is much more precarious than is ours. 

Still, we are heartened that the traditional flow of aid from a rich country (ours) to a developing one (Kenya or Nepal) might soon be reversed.  The seamstresses in both countries have expressed pride at being able to help those who had once helped them by giving them the first dignified job they have ever had.  They would have sewn the masks for free. 

Thank you to all those who have helped by donating to this cause.  We are learning just how interconnected our world really is.  We are all in this together.  ODFL