REHOBOTH BEACH, Del.-A registered medical therapist in Delaware is giving back to teachers in the community, using her all-natural body soap shop products to create a non-profit initiative called 'Hand Washing'.
Kate Bonnema has been an active medical therapist for a little over 20 years and she said she has never seen anything like what she has seen this year once the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
“I remember as a healthcare worker what it was like to go in when it was like in March and in April when all this stuff first started and how I mean, it’s scary," she said. "You know you’re kind of putting your life on the line and that kind of thing. So as we got closer to going back to school I had the thought of you know, all these teachers who must be having these kinds of feelings and stuff.”
Bonnema first created her soap shop 'Rehoboth Beach Balm' after undergoing knee surgery in 2018, which left her out of her job for a bit and because of that, she began to grow plants and herbs in her home garden to create products.
The hobby, quickly turned into a side business, creating various products; anywhere from lip balms and soaps, to candles and essential oils.
“Because of the high stress working in the hospital, especially right now, making soaps and making lip...it just, I find it very soothing,” she said.
She said she normally makes about 11 to 12 soap bars at a time and each small bar takes about two hours but then sits in for about 30 days, noting that the longer it sits and cures, the longer the product will last.
Bonnema said she began to think of ways to help the community. At first she was donating soaps to the homeless community but once 2020 struck, her focus was on the teachers.
Bonnema has already donated about 700 bars. Mailing some up North or hand-delivering them to areas in Milton and Rehoboth. Thanks to social media, 302 Bicycles also recently made a significant donation to the cause.
“I just saw that she was trying to do something good," John Lehne, owner of the bike shop said. "We’ve been, our charitable donations for our shop’s been down this year ‘cause we’re not having quarter auctions and silent auctions and all that kind of stuff so, I was like ‘let me reach out and see if I can help out schools in town.”
A simple $5 donation can help give away a total of 12 bars of soap.
If you wish to donate, you can click here to visit her official website.