It's Time to Step Up Makers of Austin

This is the fight of our lifetime right now and there are many who are on the frontlines battling this invisible enemy around the clock. We cannot take their place, so our mission is to support them and meet their needs. Recently we have been inspired by Destin Sandlin's recent Smarter Every Day video. There are gaps in the hospitals’ supply line and we are working to fill those gaps. Austin Fighting Covid’s mission is to start manufacturing, sanitizing, and distributing whatever personal protective equipment (PPE) Austin-area medical facilities may need while they wait for more supplies from their regular vendors. This is our fight for the lives of our community. Will you help us?

Our Current Ask: Help Masks for Docs

We are currently reaching out to medical professionals to evaluate their immediate needs, from ventilator parts to PPE. While we explore and investigate their needs, both now and in the near future, we are asking anybody who wants to help make face shields or homemade cloth masks to team up with the Masks for Docs initiative.

They have a specific file that needs to be printed using specific materials. Please view the instructions on their site. Once you have printed what you can someone will come to your house, pick them up from your doorstep, and deliver them to their processing center for distribution. This organization is really top notch and we will be partnered with them for the foreseeable future.

Please check back often to get see the latest Asks, as they will be changing depending on need.

Want to get involved more?

If you want to get even more involved with the initiative we definitely could use your help. The first step is to get set up with our Slack community. You can request an invite by sending an email to AustinFightingCovid@gmail.com.

You can also reach out by filling out the following forms so that we can have a clear indication of your contributions to our group.

Our Current Initiatives

We have a few different initiatives that we are currently working on. If you want to help with any of these and/or have a lead on potential partners to work with, please let us know.

• Medical Outreach: We need help reaching out to the different medical associations and facilities in the greater Austin area.
• Community Outreach: We always need more makers, designers, community activists, and just general go-doers.
• Communications: We need someone to help with both our internal and external communications.
• Manufacturing: We are in constant need of standardizing procedures, troubleshooting issues, and keeping the manufacturing line steady.
• Processing and Sanitation: We are in the process of setting up our own processing and sanitation facilities and we need help standardizing the process.

Our Current Needs

We have some needs that we need help with. If you can help with any of these please email us at AustinFightingCovid@gmail.com.

• Medical professionals: We are looking for doctors, nurses, dental professionals, and other medical professionals to oversee the setup of our sanitation process.
  
• Hospital and medical associations contacts: We have been reaching out to many associations already, but could really use some help in getting more contacts. Particularly with folks in the supply department who can provide direction to what is needed and who can help us get approval for our processes and prototypes.
• Fundraising: We are looking for someone who has experience and expertise in fundraising. As we scale up and get more volunteers, costs for materials and sanitation will increase. We need to meet those costs with funds from the community. If you have that experience and are willing to help, please don’t hesitate to contact us.

If you have any further questions or comments, feel free to email us at AustinFightingCovid@gmail.com