‘We’re in this together’ is four words that have never been more true to the town of Huntley. From mask making to being a frontline worker, every citizen has some story and experience on how they have been dealing with the COVID-19 outbreak. 

Cary school district teacher Amy Marturano, has been teaching for 23 years and has never experienced an event close to this. 

“My students do not have district provided devices,” Marturano said. “So I’m trying to help kids when they are working with such different tools.” 

As a student of Huntley High School, we are fortunate to be provided with devices where teachers could just email our assignments, but the schools that assign paperwork, rather than online work, deserve more recognition with this transition. 

“My district provided a lot of support and training and continues to do so,” Marturano said. “They have remained realistic through this process and are encouraging us to find balance while we work.” 

It’s not just teachers being affected by the outbreak though. Ruth Cangialosi is a doctorate prepared nurse with huge respect towards front line workers and has been making masks that exceed the CDC guidelines. 

“I make them so they tie behind the head as I don’t have elastic for ear bands, and nurses’ ears get tired of that elastic after several hours,” Cangialosi said. “I have made masks for one psych hospital and several colleagues, family and friends [and] I’ll keep making them as long as I have the supplies and the need is there.” 

Cangialosi can be reached through Facebook messenger or emailed at [email protected] to talk about donations or purchasing details. 

As there are individual mask makers in the community, groups such as the “Huntley Strong Hometown Heroes Project” have made over 800 masks for the community. 

“There are many heroes in this mask project,” group member Marie Frostman said. “Each one is helping in their own way, whether it’s cutting fabric and elastic, sewing or even donating.” 

Finally, on Easter Sunday, Teri Day along with her husband and her brother Jess, spent the day driving around with the ‘Easter Bunny’ in their car. 

“It was so exciting to see the anticipation of the kids and the smiles from the adults at this challenging time,” Day said. “I truly underestimated the time each neighborhood would take and had not anticipated letting others down when we didn’t make it.”

As a community, people have come together so much by still staying their distance away and being able to support each other. 

Whether you drew messages on the sidewalks, put hearts in the windows, or just stayed home, we thank you for your commitment and help during this stressful time!