Hidden at 2330 Main St. is consignment craft store The Hidden Treasure 2. There are many things crafters will find within the walls but the true treasures to the Longmont community are the people who own it, Sandra Noonan and Betty Aldrich.
When COVID-19 closed crafting businesses, these ladies had no idea what they were going to do to keep going but they were determined to find a way.
Unexpectedly Noonan received a call from an old employer, The Bridge at LifeCare Center of Longmont, asking if the mother/daughter duo would be willing to sew cloth masks for the assisted care facility. The order was for 100 face coverings but little did they know it was only the first of the now 23,750-and-counting masks their little store has produced for the community.
The only thing the women have gained from making the masks is more awareness for their store and better knowledge of how to sew a straight line, said Noonan, whose sewing skills were minimal when the project started.
All the fabric and sewing supplies were donated by The Hidden Treasure 2 or community members. As word got out on social media, the women found about 90 other people willing to pitch in and sew masks. One woman has brought in more than 1,500 masks.
“We aren’t going to charge you for something that has to keep you healthy,” is the reason Aldrich gave for giving the masks away for free to anyone who wants one.
Inside the door of the craft store is a table full of masks available for the taking.
The duo is currently filling a 4,000-mask order for Imagine!, which serves special needs individuals throughout Colorado. To ensure the sensory sensitivities of Imagine! clients are met, The Hidden Treasure 2 is supplying the organization with a variety of mask styles and sizes.
Help came in large anonymous donations that helped the local shop keep up with its rent and utilities. Overwhelmed with gratitude for everyone who contributed to the project, Aldrich said “God bless them. You just have to thank them every time they come in.”
Noonan’s husband calculated a monetary value of time and materials given to the project at nearly $1 million.
In a project this large many challenges arise, but the biggest so far was when they ran out of elastic. Aldrich believes her prayers were answered the very next day when two large spindles of elastic appeared at the store’s front door.
This project will continue until everyone in the community has the masks they need, said Noonan. In the meantime, supplies are still needed to spread the wealth from a little shop on north Main Street. Anyone looking to donate can contact the shop at [email protected].
