Celebrating Individuals Helping Out During the Pandemic

We've enjoyed sharing stories about organizations and fashion brands who have shifted their focuses to help those suffering from the coronavirus pandemic.  This week, we're shining spotlights on individuals who are doing all they can to make a difference in these strange, unsettling, and dangerous times. From inventors to innovators to volunteers and scicommers and celebrities, we are blown away by how many rad folks are using everything at their disposal to help as much as possible.

Thanks to everyone who already submitted a name. If you know of other people who are doing cool things to help out, let us know in the comments! We want to celebrate as many people out there as possible. 

Roya Mahboob

Mahboob led an all-girl team of teens in Herat, Afghanistan to build low cost ventilators out of up-cycled car parts. She is also an advocate for digital literacy and a member of the Time 100 most influential people list. Follow Roya Mahboob on Twitter. Read more about her work here.

Jiangmei Wu

Indiana University's Professor Wu, an origami artist, created a no-sew pattern for an origami face mask that you can print out and make at home. It uses a vacuum cleaner bag and household items. There's an adult size as well as a child size template. Check it out here. Follow Jiangmei Wu on Instagram.

Christian de Weck

MIT freshman de Weck is 3D printing masks from his parent's dining room in Massachusetts to donate to local hospitals. Read about his work here.

Chelsea Phaire

The ten-year-old Connecticut resident has sent over 1,500 arts and crafts kits to kids in foster care. Phaire's parents founded Chelsea's Charity to enable their daughter to help out during the pandemic. Visit Chelsea's Charity on the web and Instagram. 

Marina Nichols

Fifteen-year-old Nichols has been sewing masks for her Charlotte, NC community since March. She's a self-taught seamstress who first heard about the need for masks on NextDoor. Marina's younger sisters Tess and Savannah help out, too. Read more here.

Samantha Yammine a.k.a. Science Sam

Science Sam continues to post informative and helpful information on social media. Her COVID-19 talks on Instagram Stories are especially refreshing, easy to understand, and effective in fighting the spread of misinformation. Check out her website and be sure to follow Science Sam on Instagram and Twitter. 

Karina Popovich

Brooklyn-based Popovich, a Cornell undergrad, founded Makers for COVID-19 to 3D print PPE for medical health professionals. To date, the network for Makers for COVID-19 includes over 200 members, each helping create life-saving face shields and gear. The network can make over 22,000 pieces of equipment per week! Follow Karina Popovich on Instagram and check out her website.

Allie Weber

We've featured teen maker and MythBusters Jr. star Weber before, and she's back at it again with an awesome initiative called the #StayInPlayIn. The StayInPlayIn is a network of young scientists and inventors who create YouTube tutorials for projects that kids can do at home. Check out StayInPlayIn's YouTube channel, Instagram account, and Twitter. Watch closely and you'll catch videos from MythBusters Jr. co-stars Elijah Horland and Rachel Pizzolato as well as SEW Fashioning the Future interviewees such as Julie Seven Sage and BiaSciLab!

Liz Rotolo & Jenna Ferriera

After returning New Jersey to finish their college semesters from home, high school friends Rotolo and Ferriera created Save Our Seniors of Hunterdon County. It's a volunteer program that delivers food and other goods to vulnerable members of the elderly community. Read more here.

Krystal Rodriguez

Owner of Atlanta's Hodgepodge Coffeehouse, Rodriguez teamed up with other people in the community to help donate food and supplies to those in need including school children. In addition, Hodgepodge is also selling masks and other supplies to their patrons. Check out Hodgepodge Coffeehouse on Instagram. 

Benjamin Gelfand

Gelfand, a University of Wisconsin undergrad, helps seniors in his Mequon-Thiensville community by delivering groceries and other goods. He created a Google Doc to gather information and so others can help too, and his initiative has taken off.

Raven Baxter a.k.a. Raven the Science Maven

Raven the Science Maven's science communication is amazing in general, and her "Wipe it Down" rap parody is no especially amazing. Check out Raven the Science Maven's website and follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

Healy Chait, Liam Elkind, Simone Policano, & Mimi Aboubakar

These four New York/New Jersey based friends banded together to form Helping Hands. Helping Hands is a volunteer service that delivers goods to the elderly. To date, the network has made over 500 deliveries. Read more about these amazing friends here. Follow Invisible Hands on Instagram. 

Hana Rauf

Rauf, a teenager in Ontario founded Girls for Change Canada to help empower young women. However, since the onset of the COVID-19 crisis, GFC Canada has pivoted to helping the community by providing coronavirus care packages to those in need. Follow Girls for Change Canada on Instagram. Read more about Rauf here.

Taylor Richardson

Florida-based STEM advocate and future astronaut Richardson started #YWeStillPlay to help raise funds for the YMCA during the COVID-19 crisis. This is not Richardson's first initiative either! She previously raised money to send girls to see Hidden Figures and A Wrinkle in Time. Follow Richardson on Twitter and read more here.

April Littlejohn

LA-based Littlejohn is a writer/director/producer and mask maker. In addition to sewing masks, Littlejohn has moved forward with her theater productions, producing them digitally. All proceeds from both her mask making and online shows are donated to local theaters suffering during the pandemic crisis. Follow her on Instagram and visit her website.

Blake Rand

South Florida high-schooler Rand created coronafinds.com after hearing about the shortages of household necessities like toilet paper. Read more about Rand here. 

Jenny Yang, Margaret Cho, Harry Shum, Jr. & Gail Simmons

These celebrities are promoting the #TakeOutHate initiative to help Asian-owned restaurants that have suffered due to racism associated with misplaced blame on Asian-American individuals. The campaign encourages people to order from Asian restaurants to help them stay in business through the COVID-19 crisis. Learn more here.

Keep your eyes out for more awesome heroes as we update this list. Know of someone doing something cool during the pandemic? Leave a comment on this post. Or tweet to @doctortailor or send an Instagram DM to @doctortailor.