Purple Hat Ministry of St. Pius X in Greensboro turns needles and threads into helping support groups during pandemic
GREENSBORO — Members of a knitting ministry at St. Pius X Church and others are using their creative talents to sew fabric face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The parish’s Purple Hat Ministry typically knits purple hats for newborns and donates them to a local hospital for new parents to receive along with information about preventing Shaken BabySyndrome. Hospital visits and parenting classes have been curtailed as the community fights the coronavirus pandemic, however, ministry members have exchanged their knitting needles for sewing needles to help others in need right now.
“When all this started, I didn’t know what I could do to help,” says Mary Ellen Liebal, a middle school math teacher at St. Pius X and Purple Hat Ministry member. “In addition to staying at home, this is something I can do.”
The ministry has already sewn almost 100 fabric face masks and donated them to community groups including Room At The Inn, a pro-life maternity home in Greensboro.
“The biggest thing anyone can do right now to help the most people is to just stay at home,” says Marianne Donadio, vice president of marketing at Room At The Inn. “This often feels like we are doing nothing and we want to do more.
“The ladies from St. Pius found a way to use their talents at home to make masks to help keep our moms and children safe," Donadio says. "It's these little acts of love that help our clients feel cared about, and that makes all the difference in the world. We are very grateful.”
Hospice of Rockingham County in Reidsville also received masks for people to use when visiting their sick and dying family members.
The Purple Hat Ministry has also donated masks to:
• Alberta Professional Services, which provides mental health services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through group homes and community-based services, and Professional Rehabilitation Consultants, a similar St. Pius X community partner that serves disabled adults in group homes.
• Triad Goodwill for its readiness effort, “Masks for Heroes.” Goodwill has already had requests for masks from High Point Medical Center, LifeSource Inc., Guilford County Schools for bus drivers delivering food and Novant Health, Inc.
“We are truly grateful to be affiliated with St. Puis X Catholic Church that values the lives of people that generally are marginalized due to society’s perception of value,” said Mashunda Famble, owner of Professional Rehabilitation Consultants. “This church breathes life into the concept of accessibility to all and truly acting in servitude which is what God requires. To some it may be just a protective mask but to us it is a lifeline.”
“In times like this, Jesus always calls us to help the sick,” says Krisan Walker, St. Pius X parishioner and chair of the St. Pius X Community Life Committee. “In times like this, when we feel hopeless, it is extremely empowering to be able to help others, which can improve our own spiritual and mental health and outlook. It is really one big circle.”
Public health officials advise people to wear a cloth mask when they must go out in public, but they also caution that face masks are not a substitute for washing your hands and social distancing in order to slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus. People are advised to reserve available surgical masks and N95 respirators for health care workers and others on the front lines of combatting the pandemic.
It’s not just the core members of the group from the parish – a pre-med North Carolina State student contacted the parish and expressed interest in making masks with the group.
Jenny Iruela, who is at home and completing the semester through online classes, has discovered her parents’ old sewing machine and is also pitching in.
"I have been thinking of ways I could contribute to COVID-19 prevention and community relief. I thought this would be a perfect way to contribute to my community by sewing these cloth masks and distributing them to people who are in dire need of protection," Iruela says.
St. Pius X’s pastor, Monsignor Anthony Marcaccio, says the ministry’s work is a reflection of the Church’s pro-life work.
“Mother Teresa used to advocate that little things done with great love can make the difference, in this case it’s little things done for life out of love that’s making a difference. Truly all of our preventive health measures and even our social distancing can be seen as a manifestation of our commitment to protect and defend the gift of life.”
— Georgianna Penn, correspondent.
Pictured above at her sewing machine is Nivida Murphy, a St. Pius X parishioner and retired nurse.
How you can get involved
There are many resources online for making cloth masks and donating them to groups in need. One pattern is online here:
https://www.deaconess.com/How-to-make-a-Face-Mask
CDC guidance on how to wear cloth face masks:
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/diy-cloth-face-coverings.htm