Colleagues Making a Difference: PCAPP 'Seamsters'

We’ve caught up with colleagues who are making a difference in their communities as a response to COVID-19. In this series, we learn how each of them is stepping up in the face of adversity and what they’ve learned from these unparalleled times.

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, many of our colleagues have joined forces to make a difference in the community. Among those colleagues are a group of eighteen women coined the “PCAPP seamsters.”

These women work at the Pueblo Chemical Agent-Destruction Pilot Plant (PCAPP) project in Pueblo, Colorado and have generously come together to sew masks for the community and fellow colleagues.

Talent levels vary among the group, as some are seasoned sewers and others have not sewn a stitch until the effort began. That hasn’t stopped them from producing thousands of masks to date, though.

The PCAPP seamsters have created an operation to efficiently make, pickup, and distribute the masks. They have a designated driver to collect yesterday’s production and another driver to deliver and count masks. They are also utilizing communication channels to share best practices and, in some cases, sharing fabric or sewing supplies between deliveries.

Together, they have sewn over 4000 masks and continue to make sure two masks per colleague are available when returning to a safe working environment. Their motto, “We are making a difference, one mask at a time,” holds true as they continue a well-organized operation stemmed from good will.