Why We Made This - The Healthcare Bamboo Zip-Up Hoodie - $20,000 Raised For COVID19 Relief Funds

During these uncertain times, many of us have been asked to self-isolate, have been temporarily laid off or work from home. Our days have been consisting of video conference calls, sweat pants, and Netflix. There are those out there that can't work from home and whose work is needed now more than ever. Our frontline healthcare professionals and providers. Nurses, doctors, caregivers, cleaners, porters, healthcare admins, educators, technicians and many many more who are putting themselves in harm's way to help flatten the curve of COVID-19. 

Check out the Healthcare Bamboo Zip-Up Hoodie that has raised $20,000 towards the Calgary Community Response Fund for COVID-19. 

These workers are on the frontline of this crisis are working tirelessly to get ahead of this and so we can come out on top.  

This is why we wanted to create something cozy and practical that could offer them a bit of comfort and some relief for the entire community as a whole. We thought it was also a good way to highlight some of the hard work they have been doing this last few weeks and months and for the foreseeable future. 

We wanted to make a zip-up hoodie for them because a zip-up is the most practical sweater for frontline professional healthcare workers. These workers don't have the time to take off all their ID badges and stethoscopes when they need to take a layer off or put one on. They need something that can keep them warm while charting at their stations or pop outside to catch their breath. Something they can put on and off easily while giving them a little warmth and comfort to help them get through their 12 hour plus shifts. 

We decided to make this sustainable and bamboo cotton. For many reasons we've talked about before, bamboo cotton is simply one of the best natural materials to make garments out of. Bamboo cotton is a sustainable material and uses a tenth of the resources to produce that it does to take for regular cotton. It doesn't have to be blended with polyester which helps reduce the number of microplastics that end up in the ocean after washing your clothes. Most importantly, however, in the cases of frontline health care professionals, not only is bamboo cotton insanely soft but it is extremely practical for their line of work. Bamboo cotton is naturally anti-microbial, meaning that it contains agents that kills microorganisms or stops their growth, like the ones produced from sweat. This means that clothing made from bamboo cotton, won't stink as fast and doesn't need to be washed as often. Two things that are very important those working in essential health care right now. 

$20,000 has been raised from this bamboo cotton zip-up hoodie will be donated towards the Calgary Community Response Fund for COVID-19. 

The COVID-19 Community Response Fund is a collaboration with The City of Calgary (including the Calgary Emergency Management Agency), and United Way of Calgary and Area, to support community agencies who are working diligently to keep Calgarians safe and well.

We have made some custom garments for units and teams in hospitals before and collectively we came up with this design that shares different aspects of everyday life and work for these incredible people. Inside every action that they do is a real sense of love and care, which the heart represents. The people that they take care of are someone's loved ones. Your mother, brother, granny, neighbour or best friend. Over the past few months, we have seen requests for more of these sweaters and for a way that people can order them. So we are bringing this design back and making it public by popular demand. Share it with someone you know and love who works in the frontlines of healthcare during this time. 

One of the many benefits of manufacturing entirely here in Canada is that our manufacturing and supply chain has not been affected. All necessary safety precautions have been taken and when you buy a piece of Canadian made clothing you are not only supporting Canadian small business but you are single handily supporting every Canadian small business in their supply chain. Which in our case, includes many family-owned and operated businesses that are doing their best to keep their employees on staff and support a diversified Canadian economy. 

If you have any questions, comments or rude remarks, feel free to reach out to our team anytime, day or night to info@locallaundry.ca