LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Healthcare workers across the country have been concerned about the lack of resources needed to keep them safe. Athletes at UNLV are hoping to help locally.
Thanks for the nomination @NevadaEquip! Sorry it’s not us doing our normal sports job but we’re in the middle of making masks for UMC Hospital here in Las Vegas. You have 24 hrs to post you doing a sports job or donate $20 to a local charity. @nuequipstaff @CSUEquipment @WyoFBEQ pic.twitter.com/YT7SWJz4va
— UNLV Equipment (@UNLVEquipment) April 10, 2020
UNLV athletics have created 3,000 cloth masks for UMC patients out of Rebel fan shirts and apparel, thanks to the support of Nike and the Andre Agassi Foundation for Education. Rebel student-athletes, coaches, staff and their families made the masks at home.
"This has been a great opportunity for them to give back and stay active," said the head coach of track and field, Yvonne Wade. "They're at home, not a part of their team or their community, so to have this as a project has been wonderful for them."
13 HELPS | Coronavirus Resource Guide
When the coronavirus pandemic forced UNLV to cancel the rest of their sports seasons, the teams knew they had to find a way to give back to their fans.
"We recognized that our community was hurting," said Desiree Reed-Francois, the athletic director at UNLV. "We just wanted to do something at UNLV athletics."
COMPLETE CORONAVIRUS-RELATED COVERAGE
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is now recommending people wear cloth masks in public.
For a step-by-step guide illustrating how to make a homemade cloth mask, view this video:
