Olympian Hayley Wickenheiser sent out a tweet on Sunday, April 5 saying she will personally gather donations of N95 masks, surgical masks, gloves and chemo gowns for Toronto’s frontline healthcare workers. Wickenheiser, who is currently in medical school, said she has received many desperate pleas from her friends who work on the front lines.
Then, adding to the star power, actor Ryan Reynolds retweeted Wickenheiser’s message adding that he would send “something awesome” to anyone who donated these items. He mentioned personalized videos, Deadpool bobbleheads, and other movie memorabilia.
Read @wick_22’s message below. But first… People who help Hayley get this critical PPE gear will get something awesome from me. I’ll send you personalized videos. I’ll sign whatever you want. I’ll send Deadpool Bobbleheads and/or movie memorabilia. https://t.co/RxwPWFt8CW
— Ryan Reynolds (@VancityReynolds) April 6, 2020
This is just one example of the many grassroots missions to gather donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) for hospital workers in the GTA.
On Friday, April 2, Ron Baruch, principal at Paradise Developments, sent a letter to North York General Hospital saying he would be donating 25,000 surgical masks on behalf of Paradise Developments, TACC Developments, and Fieldgate Developments.
He wrote, “Our collective families are grateful for the central and critical role community hospitals, in particular, play in this COVID-19 battle. Please extend our profound thanks to your front line workers, and indeed the entire organization who carry on during this crisis.”
An IKEA outlet in Vaughan also donated 66,000 masks to North York General.
We’re thrilled to be able to support our frontline health care providers! If your organization has extra PPE, please contact local health authorities to see how you can help #ThePPEDrive #IKEACanada #IKEAVaughan https://t.co/hOmQOsUpfZ
— IKEA Canada (@IKEACanada) March 26, 2020
Other hospitals across the GTA are also receiving donations from local organizations such as Mobilizing Masks. In partnership with Carefirst, Mobilizing Masks for Healthcare Providers has been arranging contact-less pickups of mask donations from citizens across the GTA.
They have been able to gather close to 22,000 masks and other PPE along with almost $50,000 in donations that will be used to purchase additional masks for hospital staff. Donations have been made to Women’s College Hospital, Toronto General Hospital, Sunnybrook, St. Michael’s, St. Joseph’s and more.
We can! We’ve been able to distribute masks and PPEs to ALL major hospitals in the GTA. #COVID19 #covid_19 #coronavirusoutbreak #frontlinemasks #PPE #stayhome #gta #frontlineworkers #torontostrong #GTAhospitals #helptoronto#stayhomeforus #6ix #healthcareheroes pic.twitter.com/Nqjejxn7Hj
— Mobilizing Masks for Health Care Providers (@frontlinemasks) April 5, 2020
Those who are able to donate can contact the Carefirst hotline (416-646-5108) or arrange a pickup time by filling out the online donation form. All monetary donations above $25 will also be issued a tax receipt by Carefirst. Mobilizing Masks is a grassroots organization of physicians and advocates in the GTA and Carefirst is a non-profit, registered charitable community services organization established in 1976.
The organization will pick up masks in Markham, North York, Richmond Hill, Scarborough, Thornhill, Toronto, and Vaughan. The masks need to be ASTM F2100-11 rated surgical and procedural masks and the N95 masks should be NIOSH approved.
For more information or to make a donation, head to frontlinemasks.ca.
