ROCKY RIVER, Ohio — One by one, each bag gets attached to a branch. Inside of the plastic is a little piece of comfort, something that could help save a life.
"One of the things about the giving tree is it is just constantly giving back to others,” said Kira Krivosh.
Krivosh is the co-founder of The Giving Tree Project.
In addition to leaves and branches, her trees bear masks.
"We were scared and we realized there wasn’t a lot of control that we had over things, but one thing I did have control over was making masks for my friends and family,” she said.
Krivosh’s focus soon shifted to others.
With the help of State Senator Nickie Antonio, she was able to kickoff her project.
"When there’s a time of crisis we have this opportunity to be our best selves, this kind of a project shows us what our best selves look like,” said Antonio.
The very first giving tree is right outside of the Rocky River Senior Center with dozens of masks hanging for anyone to take.
"I think there’s some perspective and some significance on having this outside of the senior center,” said Krivosh. "Some of the people that have been reaching out to us have been seniors and they so desperately need these masks .”
While everyone is allowed to grab a mask, the folks at The Giving Tree Project ask that you only take two and hand wash them before using.
"We wanted to make sure that there are masks available to people who really needed it to just make our community safer as a whole,” said Krivosh.
The giving does not stop in Rocky River. Krivosh said she hopes to take this project all across Northeast Ohio—Lakewood is next.
"Our goal is to make sure that we can possibly have a giving tree in every community so that people can come and go and make sure that they have the masks that they so desperately need,” she said.
Krivosh hopes the giving tree keeps growing and everyone who needs a mask can get one.
"It not only makes our community safer but it also makes people feel like they have some control over their health and safety,” she said.
If you want to volunteer to cut fabric or sew masks, email givingtreeprojectrr@gmail.com or send them a message through their Facebook page.
