Face shield donation benefits Milwaukee, Waukesha county groups
MILWAUKEE - Amazon and United Way have partnered up to hand out PPE, making deliveries to a few charities and service groups in need on Tuesday, Oct. 27.
There's just something about a package delivery that makes people smile. But for packages containing PPE, the items inside are what's important.
"They reached out to us, letting us know that they had 10,000 face shields available for distribution in our region," said Tim Coughlin with United Way of Greater Milwaukee & Waukesha County.
Two thousand face shields were handed out on Tuesday morning across Milwaukee and Waukesha counties.
"Within a week and a half, we were able to get rid of 10,000 face shields and get them to the organizations that need the most," Coughlin said. "We were shocked, and really excited to partner with such a large corporation like Amazon."
The groups that received the face shields are philanthropic in nature, ranging from the Silver Spring Neighborhood Center to Hope House of Milwaukee.
"We are best known as a homeless shelter. We have 10 families that live here with us on site. In addition to that, we have formally homeless families living in the community in both rapid rehousing and permanent housing," said Wendy Weckler with Hope House.
Wendy Weckler with Hope House
The delivery arrived on organizations' doorsteps just as infection rates across the area soar. The distribution offered a surprising bit of good news to people's faces.
"I mean, it's a huge deal. As everyone knows it has been hard to keep these kinds of supplies in stock," Weckler said.
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As we get closer to the holidays in the coming weeks, supplies will be crucial.
If you'd like to help United Way make donations possible, visit unitedwaygmwc.org.