WASHINGTON — Our superheroes that work the front lines during COVID-19 wear masks. Four other heroes found a way to make them and it all started with a tweet.
Lynn Overmann is from D.C. She saw a post of a woman wearing a Philadelphia Flyers medical mask on Twitter, wearing scrubs and showing her team spirit.
That women’s name was McKenzie Miller and yes, she was a Flyers fan, from the Philadelphia area. Inspired, Lynn replied to McKenzie’s post asking how she could get a similar mask made but with a Washington Capitals logo.
"I was happy to send the fabric to anyone who can knit it," Overmann said.
As word got out about Overmann mailing fabric to create Capitals masks for first responders, two more women stepped up to help out -- Heather Harget, a Caps fan from the Baltimore, Md. area, and Tracy Hathaway, a Chicago Blackhawks fan, who lives in the Atlanta, Ga. area.
"We are putting hockey aside," Miller said. "Whether you are a Capitals fan, Flyers fan, or Blackhawks fan to help make a difference."
The four women sewed numerous medical masks that donned the Capitals logo. Once completed the masks were mailed directly to first responders in the Washington, D.C. area.
One of the recipients was the Fredericksburg, Va. volunteer rescue squad, who tweeted their appreciation, thanking the ladies for the donations. Others made joking fun at the team's rivalries, but were grateful the masks brought people together.
"As a Flyers fan, I'm not offended at this time," one person wrote on Twitter. "As long as it protects you and keeps you healthy, thank you and stay safe."
To show appreciation for Miller's work, Overmann mailed her a T.J. Oshie bobblehead.
Oshie, the forward for the Capitals hockey team, is McKenzie's favorite.
"I really do love T.J.," Miller said.
"Given the rivalry between the two teams (Capitals and Flyers) to go along with the Capitals fabric, I thought a T.J. Oshie would be a good gift," Overmann said.
Despite the coronavirus keeping families stuck in their houses, four women, four strangers in four different parts of the country put their hockey differences to the side and made masks to save lives.
They already agreed to attend a Capitals game together when hockey comes back. They also agreed the game should be when the Capitals play the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Capitals rival.