Scott Myers was in search of a way to do his part during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The instructor at Manteca Unified's Be.Next Game Design Academy received a call from local dentist Nabeel Cajee of the Print to Protect Coalition.
"It's interesting how that happened," Myers said. "The doctor reached out to (Manteca Councilman) Gary Singh, who got a hold of (MUSD Community Outreach) Victoria Brunn."
The message finally got to Myers via Be.Tech Principal Carey Simoni.
"We had all that equipment at the shop (at Lathrop High) sitting idle," he recalled on Tuesday.
Thus, his introduction to Print to Protect Coalition, which is a recently established non-profit group that's working to meet the needs of frontline healthcare workers, first responders and essential employees in these unprecedented times.
The need for face shields came from Representative Josh Harder's office via the Central Valley PPE initiative, a centralized relief effort to collect and deliver these much-needed medical supplies.
The Print to Protection Coalition includes individual makers along with community partners from the University of the Pacific, HATCH Workshop, the Stockton / San Joaquin County Public Library System, and Be.Tech.
Myers was able to help out using his laser cutter.
"I'm able to make two (face shields) at a time, about every two minutes," he said of his use of the laser cutter.
His group just received 4,000 square foot of PETG plastic from the Coca-Cola Company and 5,000 faces hield frames from Maker Nexus.
"It takes longer to cut the plastic to fit for the laser cutter," he said.
Myers is juggling his network manufacturing efforts to go along with distant teaching his students from the LHS shop, getting home in time to help his own children with their school work.
He's made 200 faces hields so far with his laser cutter, with the goal of making 5,000.
"I'm spending four or five hours a day in the shop between work (on the face shields) and classroom instructions," said Myers.
Information on Print to Protect Coalition is available on Facebook.
