Loving the Opportunity: Skating judge making masks for those on the front lines

By Troy Schwindt

Editor’s note: Shirley Taylor is just one of many U.S. Figure Skating members who are doing their part to help during this unprecedented public health crisis. We would like to recognize those who are making a difference during these trying times. Please fill out the form below and tell us your or a loved one’s story.

It didn’t take veteran skating judge Shirley Taylor long to find something productive and meaningful to do as she and the rest of the country remain home in the midst of this ongoing worldwide health crisis.

“After a couple of days, I was looking for something to do and heard that people were starting to make surgical masks for nursing homes, fire stations and friends,” said Taylor, who lives in Southborough, Massachusetts, and is a member of The Skating Club of Boston. “So I got the pattern online and just started making them. I contacted all my local judging colleagues and I offered to send them masks. It made me feel good that everybody wanted them.”

Soon after, Taylor began making masks for the local fire department to distribute locally.

She then talked to her doctor, Nina Maria Cotran, who is working on the front lines of this deadly pandemic. She asked Taylor to make masks for Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston. 

“I’ve been sending 75 to 100 masks to them weekly,” Taylor said. “Additionally, I am fulfilling requests from my friends and their families. Since this is such an unsettling time, I find great happiness in the fact that I am able to do something productive and make a positive contribution to prevent the transmission of the virus.”

Many of Taylor’s fellow judges have also stepped up to help by sending her materials for the masks. Because of supply and demand, many of the materials are hard to find right now.

“It’s hard to get 1/4 inch elastic and cotton fabric, but my friends are rallying for me,” Taylor said. “Shirley Holdsworth, a judge from New Hampshire, is also helping me out with sewing. We send pieces back-and-forth through the U.S. mail. 

“Also, Ann Fauver, a judge from Maine, just sent me a huge envelope of cotton-quilting fabric. Another judge, Laura Days, just sent me an email saying she ordered fabric for me and it is being sent to my house. People are wonderful in a crisis. It makes you feel so good when you can help out in some small way.” 

Taylor’s desire to help has always been a big part of her life. She used to make and sell decorative house flags as a business.

“After 9-11, I began to make only American-themed flags with stars and stripes,” she said. “Similar to now, American flags couldn’t be found or bought, so I improvised and made my own. It helped me through the 9-11 crisis, just like making the masks now is helping me as I help others.”