Lin Sisters From Queens Make See-Through Masks Designed To Help The Deaf And Hard Of Hearing: 'We Just Want To Help Others'
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Sisters in Queens have made it their mission to support the deaf and hard of hearing by creating see-through masks and sharing them throughout their Kew Gardens community.
As CBS2's Vanessa Murdock reports, the Lin sisters have big smiles, but even bigger hearts.
Julia, Kate and Sarah Lin crafted their see-through masks from scratch.
"With a lot of people wearing masks, it is hard for people who are deaf or hard of hearing," 13-year-old Sarah said. She's been a Girl Scout for seven years.
"This is a project to really just to spread awareness, it's not for us to make money. We just want to help others," 11-year-old Julia said. She's been a Girl Scout for six years.
"We get to make the world a better place," said 15-year-old Kate. She's been a Girl Scout for ten years.
They started their "Deaf and Hard of Hearing Friendly Project" in July.
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They spent at least 100 hours fine-tuning their template to make sure the see-through mask is non-toxic, eco-friendly, effective and adjustable too.
The inspiration behind the mask is their mom, Annie. Like more than 200,000 New Yorkers, she too is hard of hearing.
"Without her, our life would be, like, really, really hard," Kate said.
They wanted to make her life easier.
"She has a lot of trouble going to stores because of the mask situation. She can't read lips, and the voice is a lot more muffled," Julia said.
"With our project and the clear panel mask, she can see what people are saying and lip read much better," Sarah said.
The good will of the girls travels far beyond family. They've sewn 130 masks so far.
"We use a lot of our own money to do this, but we also get some donations," Sarah said.
Like a recent donation of $250. The money goes to materials.
The girls hand deliver masks to the local businesses for free and give them a sticker to put in their window, letting the world know the establishment is deaf and hard of hearing friendly too.
"It's nice to know that other people won't have a hard time communicating with store owners," Kate said.
All thanks to the Lin sisters and their see-through masks, made with a whole lot of love.
To find out more including how to make the masks yourself, CLICK HERE.
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