Volunteers hand out masks to Roanoke public housing residents

A volunteer delivers masks and hand sanitizer to residents of the Bluestone Park public housing complex in Roanoke, Virginia. (Taj Simmons, Copyright 2020 by WSLS 10 - All rights reserved.)

ROANOKE, Va. – Masks have become an important item in Virginia to stop the spread of COVID-19. That’s why dozens of volunteers made sure people in need had the necessary tools to protect themselves.

The group, led by the Virginia Medical Reserve Corps and Delegate Sam Rasoul, handed out safety kits in Roanoke's public housing complexes Friday morning. The kits included masks, as well as hand sanitizer and water.

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Reserve Corps Unit Coordinator Mary Louise Legg says everyone must be covered for the virus to tail off in the state.

"It's very important. This is a large part of our community,” Legg said.” Sometimes we do not think about and it gets overlooked, but it should not be. These people are hardworking just like everyone else."

The masks came from a larger shipment of 20,000 masks recently delivered by the Virginia Department of Health’s Health Equity Work Group to the city of Roanoke.