The Giving Tree Expands To Offer Masks In Kamm's Corner

An initiative providing free masks is expanding into the West Side neighborhood of Kamm’s Corner.

The Giving Tree hangs masks off tree branches in plastic bags for residents to take home, free of charge. Democratic State Sen. Nickie Antonio co-founded the project with Rocky River resident Kira Krivosh.

Volunteers placed 150 masks on the new Kamm’s Corner tree Friday, Krivosh said, and provided roughly 200 more over the weekend.

“Initially we just try to make sure there’s as many masks out there with the demand,” she said. “Typically, from there, it kind of tapers off to about 25 a day.”

Placing the masks on trees gives people a way to access them while staying safe, Krivosh said.

“It’s in a socially distanced way, they’re in plastic bags,” Krivosh said. “We only ask that you just take two per person, and handwash prior to your first use.”

The initiative aims to provide masks to those who may not be able to afford them or find them anywhere else, Antonio said.

“We knew that the necessity was increasing for people to wear masks,” Antonio said. “We also knew that there are just always people who don’t have access.”

The Giving Tree project started during the statewide shutdown, Antonio said, with one tree in Lakewood and one in Rocky River.

“We’re not necessarily looking for long-term, being responsible for them, but rather, helping sort of set them up and then hoping they’ll be sustainable by whatever group is working with them,” Antonio said. “Then it’s an opportunity for local involvement, as well.”

The goal is to eventually expand the initiative to the East Side, said co-founder Krivosh, especially as area mask mandates go into effect.

“The idea is to make sure there is something within each neighborhood that makes sure people can go there and get something,” Krivosh said. “It might be masks today, but it might be something different tomorrow.”

The Giving Tree provides fabric and a sewing pattern volunteers, she said, dubbed “sewists,” who then make the masks. The Masks4Community initiative has also provided materials and some masks, and the group, Because I said I would, based in Rocky River and the storefront Pins and Needles have provided fabric. Peace by Piece Cleveland has also helped by pre-cutting fabric to speed up the mask-making process.

“It really is a team effort, there’s a lot of community involvement,” Krivosh said. “In the battle for COVID-19, I really think that anyone who’s able to help this project move and help more and more people just makes our community safer.”