‘They’re invaluable’: Central Florida hardware stores donate face mask respirators to front-line workers

LAKE COUNTY, Fla. — When the general manager of a local, family-owned chain of hardware stores found out he was getting a shipment of in-demand face mask respirators, the first thing he did was call his dad.

“I said, ‘Dad, they’ll be gone in an hour if we put them on the sales floor. What should we do?’” Cade Carter, general manager of Carter’s ACE Hardware stores, said.

“He said, ‘Let’s donate them to people in the community who need them the most.’ And so that’s what we did.”

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Carter said his nine stores donated their shipment of 3M P100 face mask respirators to first responders on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“These are so hard for first responders to find, and they’re invaluable for these people on the front line,” he said.

Fifty of the masks were donated this week to Lake County Emergency Management and another 40 were donated to AdventHealth in Tavares.

“It’s really going full circle. The local community is supporting us, and then we’re able to support our local first responders,” Carter said. “That’s why we exist is to help our neighbors. This was an opportunity for us to really step up and do it.”

Tommy Carpenter, director of the Lake County Office of Emergency Management, said the masks will help protect Lake County firefighters, emergency medical technicians and law enforcement officers.

“It’s an awesome donation because personal protective equipment, or PPE, is needed all around the world. This isn’t just a local issue. It’s a worldwide issue,” Carpenter said. “So for a local business to step up and provide these masks is tremendous.”

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Carter said he hopes his company’s donation, and the donations of other ACE Hardware locations across the area, help inspire other people and local businesses to give back and donate within their communities if they are able.

He said the donations help local businesses go full circle from the community supporting them to them supporting their community.

“There’s a good probability that these masks will be going to someone, and they’ll be saving or treating one of our customers,” Carter said. “That’s kind of special to think about.”

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