Brevard Zoo Volunteers Use Sewing Skills to Craft Facial Coverings for Zoo Workers

Putting in between 12 to 40 hours a week each, Brevard Zoo volunteers have made over 250 masks

BREVARD COUNTY • MELBOURNE, FLORIDA – Although the Brevard Zoo has been temporarily closed for more than a month, its volunteers continue to contribute their time and talent from their homes.

April 19–25 is National Volunteer Week, so the Zoo thought it was the perfect time to say “thank you” to their volunteers while highlighting the great work that they selflessly provide them.

When all essential staff began wearing masks in early April, volunteers Barbara Desrosiers, Dawn Smith, Karen Foust, Linda Chadwick, Linda Owiesny and Patty Schmitt put their sewing skills to work, skillfully crafting facial coverings with materials they purchased themselves as a donation to the Zoo.

Elastic, which is used to secure the mask behind the ears, is in short supply these days, but these clever crafters have circumvented this problem by using shoelaces that can be tied behind the head for a snug fit.

Putting in between 12 to 40 hours a week each, these superstars have made over 250 – and counting – double-layered cotton masks for our staff in plenty of fun patterns, themes, and colors, including animal print, of course.

The masks are dropped off at the Zoo, then sorted and distributed to employees working on-site, who are instructed to disinfect their masks between uses.

Last year, their volunteers contributed nearly 100,000 hours of their time, serving in roles as varied as sea turtle rehabilitators, docents, oyster gardeners, and landscapers.

Brevard Zoo misses them all terribly, and they cannot wait to see them again when the Zoo reopens.

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