Coronavirus: La Grange Woman Makes Face Masks

LA GRANGE, IL — Lisa Paraday retired as a nurse from University of Illinois Hospital in Chicago three years ago, But in recent weeks, she has been thinking about her former colleagues, particularly about their reported lack of face masks. So she decided to do something about it.

The La Grange resident undertook an effort to make masks using common household items such as vacuum cleaner bags. It is no match for the fit-tested N95 masks, but the homemade creations serve as a barrier until better equipment arrives during the coronavirus pandemic.

Paraday, a nurse for 34 years, said she saw the crisis coming, as she said many other medical personnel did. Back in January, Paraday said, she went to stores to try to buy five masks for her family. They were hard to find, she said.

"Several stores were sold out. That was a sign something bad was going to happen. As far as the need for ventilators, I didn't anticipate that," Paraday said in an interview.

In her project, Paraday received the help of her husband Tom Galka, her friend Barb O'Brien and others. They made nearly three dozen masks. "It was definitely a group effort."

As for her lifestyle these days, Paraday is staying home to avoid the coronavirus. She has groceries delivered. In reaction to cabin fever, her neighbors at one point agreed to go to the ends of their properties to talk, but some got too close under social-distancing guidelines. It's that instinct for people to congregate, Paraday said. The neighborhood hasn't had such a meet-up again.

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