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Shawn Baker
East Lansing
Hero Story
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, those experiencing homelessness were critically at risk. Homeless service providers were tasked with adapting crowded shelter space to ensure that individuals and families were safe while also protecting their staff who continued to provide street outreach. Stepping up to provide services in a safe way for both guests and staff required access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). PPE – masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, face shields, gowns – at a time when it was hard to come by.
Needing someone to lead the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Housing and Homelessness charge in obtaining PPE, Shawn Baker saw the need and volunteered his time for a full year, coordinating efforts that impacted individuals across the state. He built a network with a large variety of suppliers to secure PPE; connecting with the Michigan Manufacturers Association and garnering supply donations from Fastenal and Wurth (Spartan Motors); with the Michigan Community Service Commission to obtain barrels of hand sanitizer; with a Facebook volunteer group that made 1,500 homemade cloth masks for homeless shelters; and with a manufacturer in Brighton that retooled to make face shields at a rate of 500/week with their volunteer employees.
Shawn provided logistics assistance to the Football team of Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids who assembled 500 face shields & delivered them to several homeless shelters in Grand Rapids and worked with General Motors to deliver 63,000 cloth masks and 3,300 face shields. Shawn also secured commitments to transport the supplies from the group PPE for MI as well as a volunteer trucker who transported large donations on a flatbed trailer to anywhere in the state including the U.P. He developed a transportation & tracking process to deliver smaller PPE donations.
Ultimately, Shawn created a regional hub system where large supply quantities were delivered to 4 community action agencies and the City of Detroit. Those hubs then communicated with more than 100 homeless shelters as well as street outreach providers for pick up or delivery of supplies.
A true hero, Shawn spent untold hours securing supplies, maintaining spreadsheets, working with partners and MDHHS staff. In the first several months he volunteered at least 30 hours a week. Shawn’s exemplary project management skills, knowledge of resources, ability to build partnerships, and his networking talents were essential in providing the critical supplies needed to ensure the state’s homeless citizens stayed safe during the COVID pandemic.
Shawn Baker
East Lansing
Hero Story
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, those experiencing homelessness were critically at risk. Homeless service providers were tasked with adapting crowded shelter space to ensure that individuals and families were safe while also protecting their staff who continued to provide street outreach. Stepping up to provide services in a safe way for both guests and staff required access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). PPE – masks, gloves, hand sanitizer, face shields, gowns – at a time when it was hard to come by.
Needing someone to lead the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Housing and Homelessness charge in obtaining PPE, Shawn Baker saw the need and volunteered his time for a full year, coordinating efforts that impacted individuals across the state. He built a network with a large variety of suppliers to secure PPE; connecting with the Michigan Manufacturers Association and garnering supply donations from Fastenal and Wurth (Spartan Motors); with the Michigan Community Service Commission to obtain barrels of hand sanitizer; with a Facebook volunteer group that made 1,500 homemade cloth masks for homeless shelters; and with a manufacturer in Brighton that retooled to make face shields at a rate of 500/week with their volunteer employees.
Shawn provided logistics assistance to the Football team of Catholic Central High School in Grand Rapids who assembled 500 face shields & delivered them to several homeless shelters in Grand Rapids and worked with General Motors to deliver 63,000 cloth masks and 3,300 face shields. Shawn also secured commitments to transport the supplies from the group PPE for MI as well as a volunteer trucker who transported large donations on a flatbed trailer to anywhere in the state including the U.P. He developed a transportation & tracking process to deliver smaller PPE donations.
Ultimately, Shawn created a regional hub system where large supply quantities were delivered to 4 community action agencies and the City of Detroit. Those hubs then communicated with more than 100 homeless shelters as well as street outreach providers for pick up or delivery of supplies.
A true hero, Shawn spent untold hours securing supplies, maintaining spreadsheets, working with partners and MDHHS staff. In the first several months he volunteered at least 30 hours a week. Shawn’s exemplary project management skills, knowledge of resources, ability to build partnerships, and his networking talents were essential in providing the critical supplies needed to ensure the state’s homeless citizens stayed safe during the COVID pandemic.