Calgary moms fundraising to supply 115,000 Alberta school staff with N95 masks

A group of Calgary moms is fundraising to do what they say the provincial government has failed to do: supply teachers and support staff across the province with better quality PPE.

Calgary mother Amanda Hu has been watching closely as classes resumed across the province earlier this month. 

"It's just been a mad dash and scramble for school staff everywhere to be finding protection," she said.

She was hoping to see the government supply N95 quality protection to school staff after the winter break, but that hasn't happened. 

Hu and other moms are now fundraising to outfit 115,000 Alberta teachers and school staff with N95 masks.

"The respirators that we're looking to provide for school staff are there for airborne transmission. And that's what we know about COVID-19 now is that airborne transmission is how it's spreading," she said.

The group is partnering with the Canadian Association of PPE Manufacturers (CAPPEM), which has agreed to match funds raised until Jan. 28 in order to supply two times the masks.

"We hope this public outreach and grassroots initiative acts as a catalyst for government to provide better protection for teachers," said association CEO Barry Hunt.

He said these types of fundraisers have been a focus for the association throughout the pandemic. Last October, it supplied 25,000 Ontario teachers with N95 masks.

So far, the Calgary moms have raised about $9,500 through a GoFundMe campaign. It would cost nearly $600,000 to provide one month's worth of respirators to Alberta school staff.

Hu says if they don't reach the fundraising goal, then there will be a focus on distributing the N95s they purchase equitably. 

"There's a lot of schools in rural areas or schools that are working with particularly medically complex kids that have not been prioritized," she said. 

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More people are wearing N95 or KN95 masks after the surge of the Omicron variant. Experts say it's important to create a fitted seal and wear them consistently.

Next week, the province will begin shipping 16.4 million medical-grade masks to Alberta school authorities, according to Alberta Education Minister Adriana LaGrange. 

"We'll continue this phased approach, and in total, at the end of eight weeks, students and staff will have received about 65.6 million masks," she tweeted Friday.

"We'll also begin shipping another 4.1 [millions] rapid tests for our students and staff. In total, we will provide Alberta school authorities with up to 8.6 [million] rapid tests, as required by school authorities."