Relief Society sisters in Beira, Mozambique, sewed more than 6,000 masks to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 on Thursday, April 23, 2020.
During the worldwide fast on Good Friday, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Beira got the idea to help Mozambique’s government in its efforts to reduce the spread of the virus.
Latter-day Saint leaders distributed sewing kits to members of their congregation, asking each family to sew 100 masks. The kits included cotton cloth, scissors, thread, elastic and several sets of needles.
Several sisters who did not have a sewing machine at home sewed the masks by hand.
While Mozambique is not under lockdown, everyone is required to use a mask in public. However, the cost of masks is limiting the ability of many people in Beira, where many live below the poverty line, to be protected.
Wearing yellow Helping Hands vests, local leaders distributed the masks to the people in Beira. Four hundred masks were given to municipality staff.
Beria Mayor Daviz Simango joined Latter-day Saints leaders in donating the masks to the public. He also helped explain how to use them properly.
Because of the high concentration of people around local markets in Beira, many masks were given to the local market vendors as well.
There are currently more than 15,000 Latter-day Saints in 44 congregations in Mozambique.