McLean Student Makes 200+ Masks For 911 Call Center Staff

MCLEAN, VA — Even with schools closed for the academic year, one student in McLean is finding a way to use skills learned in class to benefit front-line workers. Sasha Malik, a 13-year-old student at Cooper Middle School, made 225 face masks for first responders at Fairfax County's 911 call center.

It took fabric, elastic, a sewing machine and a desire to help for Malik to complete the washable masks, according to a news release from Fairfax County Public Schools. For about two weeks in April, Malik worked sewing machine while her parents mainly helped with cutting and pinning fabric.

Malik personally delivered the masks to the Fairfax operations center that hosts the 911 call center, along with a note of gratitude.

"I felt bad that first responders were risking their lives to protect us, but weren’t able to properly protect themselves," said Malik in the news release. "That was my motivation—to help them, while they helped everyone else."

Other messages of thanks went out to Tara Williams, a family and consumer science teacher at Cooper Middle School, and civics teacher Lily Millhouse. Malik's emails sent during Teacher Appreciation Week thanked Williams for sewing lessons and Millhouse for teaching the meaning of community service.

Along with helping first responders, she says, "It was also healing for me because I was struggling to adjust to this new norm, and the project gave me something to be passionate about."

An employee at the 911 call center invited Malik to tour the facility and potentially shadow an employee on the job. Malik told FCPS she's excited for that visit to happen.