NEA Baptist donates face shields to area school districts
CRAIGHEAD COUNTY, Ark- We are just a few weeks away from the start of the 2020- 2021 school year, and a few area school districts just received a large donations today from NEA Baptist Hospital.
As Northeast Arkansas school districts are preparing for the upcoming school year, NEA Baptist Hospital wants to help keep everyone safe.
The hospital donated a total of 1,200 face shields to Brookland, Nettleton, and Valley View Public Schools today.
"We were all really nervous about what was coming, we didn't know what to expect," says NEA Baptist ICU nurse Cassie Huffer. "We just wanted to be a part of letting the teachers know it's going to be okay. We're there for them if they have any questions. As a medical professional, we're kinda trained for pandemics but as a teacher, it's not in your background."
Working as an ICU nurse, Huffer has seen the importance of PPE.
She says she wants teachers to feel safe as they head back to the classroom.
The hospital donated 400 face shields to each district.
Enough for all teachers plus a few extras.
Director of marketing for NEA Baptists, Ty Jones says they wanted to give as many face shields as possible, while also being able to maintain their stockpile.
Nettleton Public Schools Superintendent Karen Curtner says very appreciative for the donation.
"We're very appreciative of their donation they've given us with the shields," says Curtner. "Because our teachers are going to have the masks but a lot of our teachers in addition to that have asked for those. We are just very glad to be able to give them that as well. They'll probably use the face shields when they're up in front of the classroom teaching."
Each school district did say they are thankful for the donation, as it will add another layer of protection for their staff and all teachers.
The face shields are also reusable and can be worn daily.