BMCC Students Give Back During COVID-19 Pandemic

From a busy distribution center in Albany to a food bank in San Francisco, students from the Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC/CUNY) have been working or volunteering in a variety of ways to help frontline workers or vulnerable populations impacted by COVID-19.

Among them are Liberal Arts major Fenellah Kargbo, Liberal Arts major Lilah Beldner and Art Foundations major Fernanda Carvalho. Each shared details from their work and volunteer experiences during the most challenging public health emergency in modern history.

Vital PPE, and medical equipment distributed by National Guard

On March 15, PFC Fenellah Kargbo was activated by the New York Army National Guard to work at an Albany warehouse that now serves as a regional distribution center for critical medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE).

On a typical day, several large freight trucks filled with medical supplies like IV pumps, hand sanitizer, personal protective equipment and ventilators fill the warehouse. Soldiers are tasked with tracking, and distributing the items to hospitals or other places throughout the region.

“One truck may have 25 pallets of boxes filled with equipment or PPE that have to be unloaded, accounted for and then re-loaded into different trucks for distribution,” said Kargbo who recently learned how to operate a forklift. “There is a lot of lifting involved, so it can be quite a good workout, by the time you get home for the day, you feel it physically.”

The first few days on the job, Kargbo and her fellow soldiers worked 12-hour shifts, either 6 a.m. until 6 p.m. or 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. Her commanders changed that to eight hour shifts that run consecutively, 24 hours a day.

During more normal times, Kargbo, who moved to New York City from Sierra Leone in 2013, lives in New Jersey with her husband and one year old son.

“My son misses me a lot but we facetime and send videos to each other each day which is helpful,” said Kargbo. “I also talk to my family in West Africa on a regular basis, and now that I”m a mother, I get why she worries.”

She also uses the few waking hours she has off to focus on the four classes she is taking this semester at BMCC. Communication with classmates and professors has been key to her ability to keep up with coursework while working, she said.

“I just finished my psychology exam and it was a bit of challenge,” said Kargbo, who eventually hopes to get into the BMCC nursing program. “All my professors have been supportive, and found ways to work with me.”

Mathematics Professor Luc Toure and Chemistry Professor Vicky Chang have been especially supportive and accommodating of Kargbo’s tough and challenging schedule, she said. Kargbo takes pride in the work she is doing in Albany and despite all the headlines, remains optimistic that better days are coming for New York and world.

“I believe there is a light at the end of the tunnel,” said Kargbo. ” It may seem like the world is going a little crazy now, but it’s going to get a lot  better.”

Delivering Food to the Most Vulnerable

When the BMCC campus closed in March, Liberal Arts major Lilah Beldner flew to San Francisco to stay with her parents. She figured she’d be gone for a couple of weeks.

“I guess I was a bit naive about the trajectory of COVID-19 in the beginning,” said Beldner.

Within days after her arrival in the Bay area, COVID cases began to skyrocket back in New York City. Shortly thereafter, she realized her own life and plans for the near future would be upended.

“I’d have to move out of New York City and live at home for a while, maybe not even be able to start school in the fall,” said Beldner who earlier this year was among 20 students nationwide named to the prestigious 2020 All-USA Academic Team.

Nonetheless, Beldner wanted to contribute something to community during the crisis.

“I was looking for a way to get involved,” said Beldner. “I found out the San Francisco Marin County Food bank has a delivery service for elderly, disabled and immunocompromised people, so I volunteered.”

Three days each week, Beldner gets into her parent’s car, puts on her face mask and protective gloves then drives to the Potrero Hills neighborhood where she picks up several bags of groceries.

She has delivered to homes throughout almost all the city’s neighborhoods. Some are non-descript buildings with as many as ten people living in one apartment, others are single occupancy homes, many with just one resident. A large number of the recipients only speak Cantonese or Spanish, Beldner said.

“Everyone is always grateful for the groceries, often calling out thank you several times as I walk down the hallway,” said Beldner.

Beldner is taking four classes this semester and she says her professors have been patient and understanding of everyone’s unique needs.

She said she appreciated efforts by faculty such as American Government Professor, Arto Artinian who has been recording all his Zoom classes then posting them on YouTube as a resource for students.

Beldner is keeping an open mind about her future, but knows she wants to continue helping people.

“That’s what makes me feel fulfilled at the end of each day,” said Beldner.

Properly packaging 30,000 face shields for medical personnel 

Weill Cornell Medicine in Manhattan recently 3D printed more than 30,000 face shields for medical personnel in its city hospitals.  Volunteers were needed to sort and package them.

Enter BMCC Art Foundation major Fernanda Carvalho, who’s sister is completing her Ph.D. at Cornell and enlisted her family to help with the massive task.

“They brought all the materials to our door,” said Carvalho. “There were four big boxes and two small ones, containing 3D printed frames, transparency sheets and bags.”

She said they also provided gloves and recommended wearing masks and cleaning surfaces to create a safe workspace as to avoid contaminating the face shields.

“We didn’t know how many face shields they would give to us, but it turned out to be 2,000,” said Carvalho. “My sister, my brother-in-law and I worked together on the project.”

Specifically, the task was to to sort 20 shields and 20 plastic sheets, put each of those into individual plastic bags then seal it up with tape. After that, they put 25 plastic bags filled with the equipment back inside the box, completing a total of 500 face shields per box.

“When we were finished, we put the boxes outside our door and the Weill Cornell hospital staff came to pick them up,” said Carvalho, who moved to New York City from Brazil in 2019.

Carvalho, who is taking five classes, two of which are honors courses, says some weeks have been better than others during the transition to distance learning.

She is especially appreciative of Art Foundations Professor Terttu Uibopuu who she says has been supportive and creative with her online teaching.

“Also, my mentor for BMCC Foundation Fund research, Cynthia Wiseman, has been an amazing professor since Spring 2019, when I first met her, and is being especially supportive during this challenging time,” said Carvalho.