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Engineer's long-time hobby
proves useful in 2020
12 Willett Engineering’s Laura Leah Moore, P.E., never officers in Los Angeles, a friend who operates a
predicted that a childhood love of sewing would fishing resort in Alaska, friends from high school who
turn into such a vital skill as an adult living in the year live in Bermuda and, of course, team members at
2020. In late February, she asked her good friend and Willett Engineering.
exercise partner, who happens to be an infectious This September, Laura will celebrate her 25th
disease doctor, how she could safely fly to visit her year as a part of the Willett Engineering team. She’s
mom during an upcoming trip. COVID-19 was just enjoyed a long career as an engineer after some
emerging as a pandemic threat in the U.S., and Laura challenges in the mid-90s.
joked about making her own face mask, and even “Mac [Willett] saved me from hanging up my
starting a trend to make them fashion accessories. engineering license as I was coming off a terrible
Though her friend agreed that a mask was a smart employment experience when I saw his ad,” said
idea, Laura ended up cancelling her trip. Laura. “After meeting him I agreed to give it another
“Fast forward to March 19th and I received an shot, and here I am, twenty-five years later!”
email from my doctor friend, introducing me to two Growing up, sewing was Laura’s main hobby.
contacts she had that were starting an effort to sew “I have been sewing since I was able to hold a
masks for the medical community,” recalled Laura. needle and thread,” she said. “It started with doll
“This started an email thread with others interested, clothes made from felt with crude stitches, then my
and several of the leaders started a Facebook mom taught me how to use her mom’s old cabinet
group. By the end of that first weekend the group sewing machine. I made many of my own clothes
had thousands of members – seamstresses, in high school and my family were gifted numerous
organizers, fabric hoarders, drivers and more. I hats at Christmas, much to their chagrin! My second
started making my first masks using one of the semester at Georgia Tech I rode the bus to Sears
patterns the group recommended.” and bought a Kenmore sewing machine to use
Today, the Atlanta-based face mask group through college.”
now has a website -- smahatlanta.org -- and has After graduating, Laura dabbled in several other
produced and donated almost 60,000 masks. hobbies before settling on quilting just three years
The efforts of the group’s 8,500+ members have ago. She currently sews and quilts for at least 30
benefitted 152 facilities. minutes a day before or after work.
As for Laura, she has sewn more than 335 masks “So when the need for masks materialized, I had
to date. She has donated them to numerous people no lack of fabric. I also was able to provide many
-- family, friends, and friends of friends -- all over yards of fabric to friends who were sewing masks,
the country. Recipients have included restaurant as my stash and passion for fabric far outnumbers
workers, nurses, teachers, veterinarian staff, police my time to produce masks and quilts.”
