MANALAPAN – A township high school student spent a day making masks for a hospital – and hopes that it inspires others to help as well.
Isaac Buckman is 17 and a high school junior at High Technology High School based in Lincroft, on the campus of Brookdale Community College. He wanted to do something positive during the current COVID-19 pandemic.
Buckman said that he spent all of April 5, working on a special project. “I constructed face masks and face shields for 24 hours straight, without any extended breaks.”
The student streamed the entire process. The video is titled 24forcovidlive on Twitch twitch.tv/24forcovid/videos?filter=archives&sort=time.
“In the end, I was able to make over 200 face masks and five face shields that I will be donating to my local hospital,” he said.
“My goal was to motivate others to help out in the effort against COVID-19, whether this be by making masks or by getting groceries for those who are more at risk,” Buckman added.
Buckman said during a video that showed him at work that “It was quite a journey. This was an exciting 24 hours.”
“The goal of this project was to spread the message that hospitals need more people to be making more face masks and face shields. Right now, hospitals are using N95 facemasks and if they run out it is important for them to use these masks,” Buckman said. “Hopefully they won’t have to use these masks but if they run out of N95 masks these should be useful to our local hospital so I urge you to do the same.”
He first got into sewing around a year ago and he’s been using his own 3-D printer for around seven years.
“The quarantine has given me a lot of free time. After seeing pictures of hospital workers with red lines on their faces and hearing stories of workers getting sick because of a lack of PPE (personal protective equipment), I felt obliged to do everything I could to help out,” the student said.
“After I read that the (Centers for Disease Control) was recommending that people make homemade masks and many hospitals were asking for homemade mask donations, I began making masks and shields to donate. I realized that there were many people who were not aware of this need, so I wanted to help get the message out,” Buckman added.
The student said he knew that this would be a difficult challenge, “but I reminded myself that our medical workers are working around the clock and risking their lives, so this is nothing in comparison to those heroes.”
“I am particularly interested in engineering and computer science which are the core focuses of the school. High Technology High School is a pre-engineering career academy that emphasizes the interconnections among mathematics, science, technology and the humanities,” Buckman said.
He added that his school’s mission is to prepare students to become proactive and creative problem solvers, effective communicators, and tomorrow’s leaders through a rigorous, specialized curriculum and collaborative partnerships.
“We are also ranked number one STEM High School in the U.S. by U.S. News & World Report. In school we gain experience with 3D design and manufacturing techniques. We have multiple 3D printers and a CNC machine that we learn to use. There is also a focus on using our skills for helping society. For example, our final senior project is a humanitarian design project in which we design a product that will help society.”
As to how he and his family are coping with the current COVID-19 conditions and how he is learning from home Buckman said, “everyone is having a tough time, but I know that my situation is comparatively pretty good. I am spending a lot more time with my family, although I miss seeing friends and the experience of going to school.”
Buckman is doing his best to make the most out of the free time. “I’m definitely grateful that we have all of this technology to make it possible to continue going to school during this time. The worst part is probably that I still have to get up early.”
Regarding his marathon mask making session, Buckman said, “after 24 hours of sewing, I could only get two hours of sleep because I had to be up by 7 a.m. the next day which was a Monday.”
While his family supported his project, Buckman said, “quite frankly, my family thought this was… insane. Of course, they are proud that I did my part in helping out the medical workers. They gave me a lot of support throughout the process.”
He added, “my parents and three older brothers would occasionally bring me quick snacks and drinks. When I got tired, they made me coffee.”
His mother Leslie Buckman said, “I am so proud that Isaac took it upon himself to do this. I did not see him stop working for 24 hours straight! Isaac has always been passionate about applying his technology skills to help others. It would have taken me weeks to accomplish what he did in one day.”
Buckman’s brother David said, “I thought he was a little bit crazy for doing it, but of course was proud that he had decided to put his sewing skills to work in this way, at a time when having that skill is more valuable than ever. I’m really hopeful that what he did will inspire others to contribute too.”
All the masks and face shields Buckman made will be donated to CentraState Medical Center, a hospital in his area. “As I continue to make more throughout the next few weeks, I will be donating them to other hospitals in New Jersey. All of the masks and shields are being washed and sanitized before being donated.”
