A 59-year-old teacher makes face shields for healthcare workers in between teaching online classes.
When the coronavirus pandemic started, all Jim Hoffman could think of was his 29-year-old son, Justin, a third year medical resident at University Hospital in Newark, New Jersey. According to The New York Times, the state has the second highest number of confirmed cases of coronavirus.
“For two nights I couldn’t sleep — my son and his work were just heavy on my mind,” Hofmann said in an interview with PEOPLE. “I just help thinking, ‘What could I do?’”
He finally knew what he had to do when he received an email from Rohan Sawhney, a student at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School whom he had met online before over their shared interest in 3D printers.
Hofmann, a STEM teacher at Newton High School, recalls that Sawhney was panicked and was seeking personal protective equipment for medical workers treating patients with coronavirus.
That’s when the 59-year-old thought of making face shields!
Luckily, Hofmann had access to two 3D printers in the classroom and another one in the basement. He started printing clear plastic face shields and delivered them to nursing homes and local hospitals.
According to The Record, his small operation has grown into a community, with many local businesses offering to help.
Kuiken Brothers, a building materials supplier, has helped with pick up and delivery, while Gravity Design Works, a local sign company, has offered its laser to cut plastic material into face shields. Other businesses have donated materials, time, and money.
“We feel like every one of these that we get in a medical worker’s hands can help save their life,” Hoffman expressed.
His son, Justin, said that his dad has become somewhat a star. “Nurses will come up to me and say they were using a ‘Hofmann mask’ this morning and thank the family,” Justin says. “They’re so grateful, it’s really wonderful to see.”
Justin added: “It’s one of the things we can learn from tragedies: seeing ordinary people come together to help each other.”
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