Brynn Romanovitch, 17, of Weyburn was named in a Facebook post by SaskPower as a #hometownhero, after her dad, Craig, recently submitted a story about her making cloth masks for people in Weyburn and area.
She makes cloth masks and donates the proceeds to the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital COVID-19 Hospital Fund. Her dad is a specialist in Distribution Revitalization for SaskPower.
“The idea originally came from my Auntie who lives in Regina. She asked me if I could sew her and a few of her friends a couple masks, as they were still having to go into work and needed them to be in the building,” explained Brynn.
“I started making them in mid-April and have made over 100 now. They have gone to adults and kids in and around Weyburn, and as far away as Manitoba to some relatives.”
As far as how her story came to light, she noted that SaskPower canvases its employees for stories about people who do good things in their communities.
“I do not know how many stories are typically submitted, but in this case, I was lucky enough to have mine chosen and shared. I was surprised to see the posts and all the recognition they were getting by people in Weyburn I know, but also people from different parts of the province that I do not know,” said Brynn.
The odd thing is, Brynn didn’t really do much sewing prior to her aunt’s request, as she didn’t take the Clothing class at the Weyburn Comp. Previously, her main sewing experience was from taking PAA in Grade 9 when she made a quilt.
“I do not really sew that often; I would not have even called it a hobby before now. I have done the odd project in the past but nothing as time consuming as the masks have been,” she said. “I'm not sure if I will do any more sewing after this, I’ll probably go back to just doing the odd project every so often.”
Asked if she still is getting requests to make cloth masks, she replied, “Yes, I just did my first round of donations to the hospital today from everyone's orders since mid-April. I am still getting requests from people, so I will be doing another donation once things have slowed down again.”
Brynn is in Grade 11 and will be graduating in 2021, and hopes by then that she and her classmates will be able to participate in a regular grad celebration.
“I feel for the graduating class of this year because of what they have lost because of the quarantine, as I have known a few of the graduates for a long time and have become close with them. I hope they can figure out a safe, yet fun way to acknowledge their accomplishment of graduating and see each other again before some go off to post secondary,” she said.
