Posted by Sue Hammond
 
On April 14, three Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville members delivered 15 gallons of hand sanitizer and 100 plastic face shields to representatives of Absolut Care of Westfield and also the Allegheny Health Network-Westfield Memorial Hospital, via the Westfield Memorial Hospital Foundation. A case of thermometer sleeves was also donated. The Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville worked to acquire and donate the items. The supplies were funded through a Rotary District 7090 grant.
 
The grant application was written by John “Doc” Hamels, Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville President, and was implemented by Hamels and Dan Smith, Rotary District 7090 Vocational Training Team Chair, Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville Youth Services Chair and Past Club President. Mike Harrington, Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville Past Club President, served as the event photographer.
 
Rotary District 7090 officials secured approval to re-purpose the Vocational Training Team parts of the 2019-2020 Rotary District Grant Spending Plan to support COVID-19 related activities in our Rotary District. Dan Smith explained, “Our Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville secured a $1,000 Rotary District 7090 Grant to fund the donations of the needed supplies. Rotary District 7090 had allocated $20,000 for these efforts among our 68 Rotary clubs in this district in the US and Canada. Our club received the maximum award of $1,000.”
 
John Hamels noted, “Dan Smith and I teamed up to write and implement the grant. We did some investigation and had discussions with staff members of the two medical facilities to learn what supplies were most needed. We also wanted to involve local vendors as much as possible.  We are proud that the Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville is able to do its part to help during this pandemic.”
 
Smith added, “Through this grant, our Rotary club was able to donate 15 gallons of hand sanitizer from Mazza’s Five & 20 Spirits & Brewing distillery in Westfield, NY,  which recently switched from brewing spirits to producing sanitizer, and 100 TrueHero Extreme Coverage Face Shields produced by Jamestown Plastics in Brocton, NY. Using local suppliers is a win-win for all! Additionally, we were able to provide a case of thermometer sleeves.”
 
Hamels said, “When I approached the folks at Mazza’s Five & 20 about the sanitizer, they offered a 100% donation of the 15 gallons. Because of their generosity, we were then able to purchase all of the face shields and thermometer sleeves through the District Grant.”
 
The Rotary Club of Westfield-Mayville gratefully acknowledges the Rotary District 7090 officials who offered the District Grant specific for COVID-19 related activities and who approved this club’s grant application, and all health care professionals for their ongoing efforts during the especially challenging times of this COVID-19 pandemic.