People wearing masks visit the Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C., the United States on April 12, 2020. (Photo by Ting Shen/Xinhua)
Back in late January when China was in the direst situation of the COVID-19 outbreak, Ken Markinsky helped donate a total of 120,000 masks to China through the North Carolina Chinese Scholars Sino-U.S. Exchange Association (NCCSEA), a non-profit of which Markinsky's Chinese-American wife Nie Hui is a member.
Exactly two months after NCCSEA's donation arrived in China, data compiled by Johns Hopkins University showed the death toll in the United States from the coronavirus surpassed 23,600 early Tuesday, higher than any other reported worldwide.
"We all live on the same planet, and no one can isolate him or herself from others," Nie said. "Only by helping each other can we all be protected against the virus."
Staff from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services told the House Oversight and Reform Committee earlier this month that 90 percent of the personal protective equipment from the federal government's Strategic National Stockpile had been distributed to states, and that the remaining 10 percent would be reserved for federal workers.
That means that states still grappling with surging cases and rocketing fatalities will no longer get critical medical supplies such as surgical masks, respirators, gloves, gowns and face shields from the federal government.
Concerned about the lack of masks available to clinicians, Huang Jiaoti, chair of the department of pathology at Duke University, pleaded for help to find reliable supplies from China.
Members of Belmont Chinese American Association (BCAA) donate face masks to a fire station in Belmont of Massachusetts, the United States, on March 20, 2020. (Xinhua)
Much to Huang's surprise, parcels from China containing nearly 100,000 masks arrived just two weeks later.
"This is very admirable: thank you to all concerned for doing this," read an email dated April 7 sent by a pathology department faculty member after being notified of the masks' arrival. "Bravo!" said another.
In Greensburg, Pennsylvania, Juliet Hooks bought 1,800 masks for her students in China in February when she heard there was a shortage. Altogether, the English teacher and her colleagues donated some 3,000 masks through VIP Kid, a Chinese-owned online teaching platform.
Just one month later, the role of VIP Kid teachers changed from donor to receiver, as they received masks and best wishes from their Chinese students.
"These just arrived from China with love," a VIP Kid teacher named Jennifer wrote in a social media post on March 29, showing a picture of masks.
"This made me cry," wrote the teacher, who received the masks from the mother of one of her Chinese students, later distributing some of them to friends, as well as local doctors and nurses.
"This was her way of being kind as well. She now sees us experiencing what she lived through," Jennifer added.
