Gallery • 7 Photos

Weishaar posing with some of the face shield parts he produced using his 3-D printer.

During the past few months, the effects of COVID-19 and the social distancing shelter-in-place have reshaped how society functions. School classes are being held online, some businesses have temporarily closed, grocery stores require shoppers to wear face coverings, public places are heavily monitored/restricted, etc. However, the group of people who have not had the luxury of simply avoiding human contact is health workers. 

People around the country have come up with creative ways to assist those individuals on the front lines. An example close to home is a large group of people from the Western Suburbs, started by Benet Academy junior Tim Pipal and his family, that have teamed together to 3D print, assemble, sanitize, and deliver face shields to protect these heroes. 

With the group having participants in Riverside and all the way in Naperville, RBHS’ very own Applied Arts teacher, David Weishaar is one of them.

“This is normal people and local businesses teaming up to donate supplies and labor to create PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) in times when safety is extremely important and equipment is not always readily available. Here is a list that continues to grow of groups, organizations, and individuals receiving the face shields,” Weishaar said.

This provision and distribution of the resources started on March 30, 2020. As of May 4th, this group has produced and distributed 5283 Face Shields, 151 of those being printed by Weishaar.  

I personally am only printing the 3D parts.  They are then brought to a family in Riverside, where they will assemble the clear shield, normal 8.5″ x 11″ clear transparency that has been 3-hole-punched to fit on the 3D printed headband, and some elastic to hold the face shield on the head.  They are then bleached for sanitation, bagged, and distributed,” Weishaar said. “I also have been printing ‘Ear Savers’ which benefit those that have to wear Facemasks for 8+ Hour shifts.”

Weishaar just hopes to see all of these efforts make the jobs of medical and healthcare workers a bit easier. 

“My brother is a 2nd year Ear, Nose, and Throat  Resident Doctor at Loyola Hospital, so I know that many Teams of Doctors and Nurses are using them on a daily basis.  It is personally important to me that these front line workers have the proper safety equipment at all times.  This is my way of aiding those that have no choice but to show up to work every day and heal those that are fighting COVID-19,” Weishaar said.