PROVIDENCE, RI—Lt. Governor Dan McKee today shared news of a donation of 208,000 face masks from Rhode Island's Chinese-American Community to the Rhode Island Department of Health and several municipalities to support local COVID-19 response efforts.
Blackstone Valley businessmen Louis Yip and Sunny Ng of Tai-O Group facilitated the donation at the request of Lt. Governor McKee. The Rhode Island Chinese-American Anti-COVID-19 Task Force raised the funds to purchase the masks from China.
Yip and Ng were the first Rhode Islanders to become International Economic Ambassadors through a volunteer initiative launched by the Lt. Governor's Office last fall. The program encourages Rhode Islanders to use their international networks to attract investment and create economic opportunity in the state. In the wake of the pandemic, Lt. Governor McKee asked ambassadors to use their networks to procure supplies and other resources to support Rhode Island.
"The way Rhode Islanders are stepping up to help us fight COVID-19 is truly remarkable," said Lt. Governor McKee. "I am deeply grateful for the Rhode Island Chinese-American community and I am proud work with them to help our state access critical supplies and combat this pandemic."
"Sunny Ng and I are glad to partner with the Lt. Governor's Office and the State of Rhode Island to coordinate this donation with our local Chinese-American community. It was a true team effort," said Yip. "Right now, we must all stand together and work collaboratively to stop the spread of COVID-19."
A total of 200,000 masks were donated to the Rhode Island Department of Health; 3,000 to each Cranston and Pawtucket and 2,000 to Central Falls.
Rhode Islanders and companies seeking to donate medical supplies can visit the Department of Health's website: https://health.ri.gov/covid/howtohelp/index.php. ###