The state of New Mexico is partnering with various business organizations to give 171,000 cloth face coverings to small businesses around the state for free distribution to workers and customers who don’t have their own.
The masks, manufactured by the apparel company Hanes, were donated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency with distribution coordinated by the New Mexico
Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management in partnership with the Association of Commerce and Industry and local chambers of commerce.
The department received 171,000 cloth masks and delivered 60,000 of them to Albuquerque on Thursday, June 18. The rest will be delivered around the state by next week, said Secretary Bianca Ortiz-Wertheim.
The masks will be distributed in numerous New Mexico cities through their local chambers of commerce and the New Mexico Association of Commerce and Industry, including the city of Belen.
Masks for small businesses in Valencia County will be available through the Greater Belen Chamber of Commerce. Call the chamber at 864-8091 to requests masks.
“Gov. Lujan Grisham is committed to opening up New Mexico and doing so safely. Face masks are an important tool to making this happen,” Ortiz-Wertheim said. “
The Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management is pleased to support this goal, and we’re grateful to the Association of Commerce and Industry and our many Chambers of Commerce who are assisting in distributing these cloth masks across the state,” she said.
“As we reopen New Mexico, it is important that our local businesses have the equipment they need to keep their employees and customers safe. We are grateful for the partnership with the state of New Mexico and our local chambers in helping to get these masks to businesses all over the state,” said Rob Black, president and CEO of New
Mexico Association of Commerce and Industry.
The Valencia County News-Bulletin is a locally owned and operated community newspaper, dedicated to serving Valencia County since 1910 through the highest journalistic and professional business standards. The VCNB is published weekly on Thursdays, including holidays both in print and online.
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April 19, 2024
