“Currently, my printer setup can produce more than a total of 15 prints of personal protective equipment per day. I hope to increase this number in the coming days so that my weekly donations help greater amounts of people,” Deshmukh said. “I'm printing all the material at my house, but my school, Moravian Academy, worked to lend me their 3D printers to do so. Mrs. Arnold and Mr. Deal from my school helped me get all the resources together, like the 3D printers and filament from campus, so I truly would not have been able to undertake this project without their continued support and assistance.”
Deshmukh is not the only LVLB grant recipient leveraging his talent to help with equipment shortages for healthcare workers. LaToya Spence received a grant from LVLB in 2018 to support her business, Sewing With Jirah. In recent weeks, she has begun to sew fabric face masks to help support medical personnel.
“Everyone has been loving the masks and the quality of them. I tried my best to make them as durable as possible because I know they will be washed a lot,” Spence said, adding that she has been complimented on her fabric choices. "I have friends and family that I know love to be stylish so I figured if I tried to make them look cute or cool they'd feel good and comfortable about wearing them.”
Tom Dubreuil, director of student affairs, Penn State Lehigh Valley, might not be able to sew masks, but that hasn’t stopped him from using his talent portraying Santa Claus to help bring comfort and joy to children during these uncertain times. Christmas City Santa, LLC, a company based on Dubreuil realistic, bearded Santa character, received an LVLB grant in spring 2019. As the "Christmas City Santa," Dubreuil said his goal during the widespread closures from COVID-19 is to help parents keep their children entertained at home, provide reassurance, and help encourage children to “stay on the 'nice' list.”
During his weekly story time, which are broadcast through Facebook Live, Dubreuil reads a children’s book, talks about "his" reindeer and answers questions. He recently began to share stories and drawings that children have created and mailed to Santa.
“The response has been wonderful,” Dubreuil said. “Using word-of-mouth communication and Facebook, I’ve spread the word about the story time. My first four story times combined have been viewed more than 3,100 times. The NBC station in western Massachusetts where I grew up even did a story about what I’ve been doing and so has local station WFMZ 69 News.”
To join the weekly chats, visit the Santa Kringle (Christmas City Santa) Facebook page at 7 p.m. on Wednesday nights. Previously recorded story times also are available to view on his page.