Many people in the Chinese community had been watching what was happening with the coronavirus in China and wanted to be prepared, said Jie Wu, Pearland Chinese Association's secretary. The Pearland Chinese Association and AYLUS had decided to cancel large events, including Lunar New Year celebrations earlier this year as a cautionary practice.
Both organizations began to collect supplies and donations for first responders and those in the medical field. Together, they raised over $13,000 and donated over 10,000 N95 surgical masks.
“It’s so urgent a situation. [Hospitals] ask nurses to make a request for masks because they don’t know how long they need to wait for the supplies to be delivered,” Wu said. “We try to pair supplies based on their needs.”
Pearland Chinese Association is run by volunteers. Every volunteer found time to help, even though many volunteers now find themselves juggling child care and homeschooling with a full-time job, Wu said.
“Every volunteer chipped in,” she said. “We have our board meetings at 10:30 at night sometimes when the kids are asleep.”
AYLUS is a youth leadership group with chapters all over the country. The Pearland chapter has members who attend both Pearland and Alvin ISDs. Many members are Chinese and were aware of how serious the virus could become, parent advisor Carol Li said.
“We knew how severe it could be,” Li said.
The group set out to help fundraise for supplies in the Pearland and Houston area. In just three days, it raised $3,000.
“I was checking the amount, and I was so impressed,” Li said. “At the beginning, we thought we would have a couple hundred dollars and thought we would get some gloves, maybe some masks. The kids are so active and they really wanted to contribute to the city where they live.”
Li said the children spread the word on social media to raise the money. They also helped collect supplies, including surgical masks. Some Chinese residents who had families in China had collected masks for their own use in late 2019, Li said.
One of the students suggested those in AYLUS trade residents' unused surgical masks for nonmedical grade masks because the medical population needs the surgical masks more than the normal population, Li said.
“She and her mom just started driving. They went door to door to get N95 masks and exchange them for normal ones. They got over 400 masks a week just from neighbors,” Li said.
Combined, both groups have gathered more than 10,000 masks, 18,000 gloves and 1,200 protective gowns. Supplies have been donated to hospitals in Pearland and Houston and to first responders in Pearland.
“The donations have been a great asset to our city, and we greatly appreciate their support,” said Raquel Garza, community outreach coordinator for the Pearland Fire Department.
Wu and Li said hospitals have been sending pictures of medical staff wearing the supplies the Pearland Chinese Association and AYLUS sent.
“We send [the photos] to the kids," Li said. "They are happy to see they can contribute to the city."
