GRANITE CITY – Even though sports have been placed on hold because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic around the world, people are still finding ways to show their support for their favorite teams.
An area mother and son duo has taken a very novel approach to both protect family and friends, and allow them to show support to the National Hockey League Stanley Cup champions St. Louis Blues.
Elaine and Dan Robertson have been making protective masks for family and friends that show the team’s popular Bluenote logo on one side, and on the reverse side, the NHL’s Stanley Cup Champions logo that indicates the Blues indeed won the beloved trophy, which dates back to 1893, and is the oldest trophy of its kind competed for by pro athletes in North America, last season, climaxing in a seven-game victory over the Boston Bruins in the Final.
“I’m making not only that mask, but other masks for friends and family,” Elaine Robertson said in a recent interview. “It’s just my way of giving back to the community.”
And hockey also runs deep in the family. Dan Robertson was a back-up goalie for the 1986-87 Granite City High team that played in the Mid-States Club Hockey Association in St. Louis, and today, both are die-hard Blues fans.
Elaine, who’s 81, is retired, and has a good reason for helping to make the masks.
“I’m retired, and I stay in the house these days,” Elaine said, “so I’ve got plenty of time on my hands,” she said with a laugh.
Elaine does feel that people should protect themselves with the masks if they go out of their homes during the pandemic, so she tries to sew together as many masks as she can. She bought material with the Blues’ logo on it shortly after the team won the Stanley Cup.
“It was one-time cotton material, so I bought about 10 yards worth,” Elaine said.
Her son understands why she started making the masks, and is very happy to help out with their construction.
“I just wanted to help out, and she is my mom,” Dan said. “My mom’s trying to protect us from the virus, and you know how moms are,” he said with a laugh. “So she started making the masks from the leftover material, and it’s taken off from there.”
Currently, wearing the masks are optional in Illinois, but are starting to become mandatory in some retails stores by workers, while some states have also made wearing masks mandatory. And the demand for the masks have increased as the crisis grows.
“I think so,” Dan said. “In fact, in some states, it’s mandatory, and I think we’ll see Illinois follow suit in a couple of weeks.”
Using the team’s logo is also a way of showing support for the team as well. When the NHL shut down last month due to the pandemic, the Blues were in first place in the Central Division of the Western Conference with 94 points, two points ahead of the Colorado Avalanche, and had the best record in the conference, trailing the Bruins by six points for the best record in the league. Having the best record in the league would guarantee home ice advantage for the entire playoffs, which would have started Apr. 8, but are also currently on hold.
“It’s one way we wanted to show support for the Blues,” Dan said. “I think it’s a great idea. It doesn’t seem like the virus is going away soon, and it seems like it’s spreading more and more. I think like the whole world wants to get back to a normal life.”
But as long as the virus remains, making the masks are one way that the Robertson’s are giving back to their community. Elaine also enjoys making them as well.
“I love making the masks,” Elaine said, “and just give them away for whoever needs them.”
