Shatila Bakery donated cakes and pastries to Beaumont Hospital, Dearborn employees working to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
By ZEINAB NAJM
Times-Herald Newspapers
Several local organizations, businesses and community members are donating their time and resources in the fight against COVID-19 in both Dearborn and Dearborn Heights.
Dearborn-based Carhartt announced it is producing 50,000 medical gowns starting April 6, and on April 20 it will manufacture 2.5 million masks. The news release also said Carhatt will continue to assist in production as along as the items are in short supply.
President and CEO Al Siblani, president and CEO of Dearborn-based EnvisionTEC, said the company has stopped production of false teeth to create swabs needed for the coronavirus testing after President Donald Trump said there was a need for the product.
The Henry Ford Museum donated 400 masks the drive-up testing site ACCESS currently has set up at its community health and research center. Period Clothing Studio employees created the masks at home with supplies from the museum, hoping to create almost 3,000 with their current supplies.
Gleaners Community Food Bank and the Dearborn Recreation Department have partnered to provide free food to households with children starting at 9 a.m. April 6 in the south parking of the Ford Community & Performing Arts Center, 15801 Michigan Ave.
Henry Ford College sent five ventilators to Henry Ford Health System hospitals in Wyandotte and West Bloomfield for use treating patients until the pandemic passes. The HFC School of Health of Human Services spent the beginning of last week boxing up necessary medical supplies to donate to local hospitals.
Sheeba Restaurant is offering free, healthy to-go meals to senior citizens 60 years and older and to children 12 and under who are in need of a meal. Delivery is free to seniors who live within five miles of the restaurants.
The Islamic House of Wisdom has been and will continue to provide free breakfasts and lunches on a first come, first served basis. Meals will be brought to vehicles outside the building.
On March 24, the Amity Foundation, ACCESS and Community in Schools of Michigan held a food drive of food boxes with the help of El-Sayed Meat Market, Al Shams Bakery and Gleaners Community Food Bank.
Uppercutz Barbershop President Ali Alhashemi started a GoFundMe to raise money in order to create his own hand sanitizer out of the business’ cosmetic lab. The sanitizer will be given out for free, according to the fundraiser description.
To donate go to www.gofundme.com/f/aqzwme-hand-sanitizer.
For police officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, doctors and nurses, Ziebart in Dearborn is offering complimentary disinfecting of the main touches of vehicles using their anti-bacterial interior cleaner.
Dearborn Heights District No. 7 collected and delivered seven boxes full of hand sanitizer, over 100 goggles and over 100 disposable masks from staff to the Dearborn Heights Police Department and Henry Ford Health System.
The Dearborn Heights Police and Fire departments received donations of hand sanitizer, gloves and antibacterial wipes from residents in the city. Rusted Crow Distillery and Spirits in Dearborn Heights also supplied the departments with hand sanitizer it produced.
Beaumont Hospital-Dearborn has received donations from local restaurants including 15,000 gloves and nine 1-liter bottles of hand sanitizer from San Bakery & Cafe.
Dearborn Council President Susan Dabaja posted about the residents and business owners who gathered supplies within hours and donated thousands of gloves, gowns and masks to the hospital.
Hussen Berry, Abed Saleh of City Recyclers, Hype Athletics Founder and CEO Ali Sayed, Salon Pure Owner Rana Sayed, Ali Boussi and James Brown were some of the names included in Dabaja’s Facebook post. Anyone with spare masks or other supplies can email Dabaja at [email protected] to donate.
Tarek Fahs of Mango’s in Dearborn donated meals to the respiratory and aid unit at the hospital March 26. Shatlia Bakery also delivered pastries and cakes to the staff at Beaumont, and Dearborn Sweets provided more than 50 boxes of sweets.
Papaya Fruit Market Owner Khalil Saad contributed hundreds of N95 masks and Detroit Furniture donated over 100 masks to employees at the hospital.
Leo’s Coney Island Co-Owners Mohamad Bazzi and Nasser Hamid delivered lunch to Beaumont, Dearborn employees, and Habib’s Cuisine Restaurant Owner Habib Bazzi provided lunch to the hospital’s emergency room personnel.
State Rep. Abdullah Hammoud (D-15th District) and Dearborn Public Schools donated 139 boxes and four cases of medical gloves and 776 goggles from the district’s science classrooms to Beaumont, Dearborn.
Zee the Cook Founder Zee Shami coordinated donations of 1,500 face shields and masks that were delivered to Garden City Hospital, Beaumont and Henry Ford Hospital.
As of April 2, Michigan had a total of 10,791 coronavirus cases and 417 deaths. More information on the virus is available on www.michigan.gov/coronavirus and www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nCoV.
(Zeinab Najm can be reached at [email protected])