Mar 23

Mar 23 MORE THAN MIRRORS: Adapting to the Times, Helping Those in Need!

Behind the Scenes, Charity, More Than Mirrors, Howard Elliott Cares

Tune in to any News outlet and you see stories of Hospital Employees making protective face masks out of office supplies or materials they pick up at Home Depot! Now these people are risking their own help to aid in the betterment of the numbers of people not only normal visitor’s, but those infected with the Covid-19 virus as well!

Article from Bloomberg News Online, March 17, 2020 Read Article Here > — Article from Bloomberg News Online, March 17, 2020
Read Article Here >

This just doesn’t sit well with Howard Elliott President, Brian Berk and his team. “We have supplies. We have the skills. So why not shift our efforts to making some kind of protection for the people that need it most?”

Here is an article written by Thomas Lester of Home Accents Today, interviewing Brian Berk on his efforts to aid humanity…..

Home accessories manufacturer Howard Elliott is putting excess materials to good use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Chicago-based producer of soft goods, mirrors and accessories is using spare materials to craft protective masks, as medical industry suppliers struggle to keep up with demand.

The production team at the Howard Elliott sewing facility assembles non-surgical, protective face masks.

Howard Elliott President Brian Berk said while watching the news earlier in the week, reports indicated the shortage of masks and protective gear. After researching what goes into creating surgical masks, Berk realized that with a little bit of spare fabric from decorative pillows, slipcover and ottoman production, some elastic and wire, a reasonable facsimile could be made.

“That was the easy part. I’m trying to donate these right now and I’m running into the bureaucracy of the government and government authorities,” Berk said. “Obviously, I’m not FDA approved and some of the people have been saying ‘that’s great but we can’t use them because they’re not FDA approved.’ We’ve tried reaching out to the FDA.”

While police, rescue and fire officials told him they can’t use the masks yet, Berk said the University of Chicago’s oncology department has indicated that the masks are good, so the masks that the sewing team made were taken there Friday evening. Since then, Howard Elliott team members have taken masks to the Will County Senior Center in Joliet, Ill, and to healthcare workers in Munster, Ind.

Howard Elliott President & Founder, Brian Berk delivering the first batch of masks to the oncology department at the University of Chicago Hospital.

In the meantime, Berk said, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s office has been helpful in offering advice for getting the masks approved.

And while some on social media are encouraging Berk to try to sell the masks via Facebook Marketplace or some other platform, he said he’s not really interested in monetizing the masks.

“When things normalize, maybe we will but right now we’re just trying to help,” Berk said.

Thomas Lester, Home Accents Today, March 20, 2020

Since this article was written, the Howard Elliott Team has produced over 45,000 masks and delivered them to Healthcare Warriors, Food Service Staff, Delivery Drivers and more across the midwest with many more to come! Follow our stories on Instagram and our Facebook Feed to follow along!

If you find you & your staff in need of masks, please contact us at sales@howardelliott.com and we will accommodate your request!