Keck School of Medicine of USC: A Love of Soccer Leads to Donation of 2,400 Masks -Soaring Samaritans Youth Movement/Masks for Medics LA

The sisters behind the Soaring Samaritans Youth Movement, a local nonprofit that provides children aid and social activism opportunities, quickly turned their support to healthcare workers during the onset of the Coronavirus crisis. Taylor and Jordyn Jackson established Masks for Medics LA and used their entrepreneurial skills to source and donate 2,400 masks to area clinics, including Keck Medicine of USC.

Co-founder, Taylor, 16, said, “I wasn’t sure how much of an impact we could have, but it’s been so great to have such an effect.” Her sister, Jordyn, 10, said “We wanted to give back.”

A soccer fanatic, Taylor has attended the USC Women’s Soccer camp since she was 11, earning the nickname the “OG,” by the coaches. Her sister Jordyn has attended the camp since she was 5. The USC Women’s Soccer program has helped the girls by uniting through philanthropy at home games.

Nearly seven years ago, the sisters started a charity to teach entrepreneurial skills by creating numerous opportunities for foster children and various youth living under difficult circumstances. Taylor & Jordyn have mobilized the community to become agents of change by sharing their passion for soccer and donating indestructible soccer balls made by One World Play Project to children around the world. One World Play Project was impressed by their initiative and began sponsoring Soaring Samaritans Youth Movement with hundreds of balls on their first shipment. The balls last 20 years, don’t require a pump and have motivational messages written on them, such as “Be kind,” “Never give up,” and “Follow your dreams.”

“When all the balls arrived in our living room, we thought we might be in a little over our heads at first,” Taylor said. “They were so generous.”

The sisters travel to foster homes and underserved communities around the world to help children, teach and deliver their soccer balls for lasting impact. They were scheduled to travel to a foster home in Florida during Spring Break, but the trip was cancelled due to the Coronavirus pandemic. They switched gears and jumped into action by finding a local way to meet an urgent need by giving back to health care workers. Taylor’s passion for helping doctors and nurses in need of protection from virus transmission was intensified because of the excellent care she received during her heart surgery when she was 12.

The sisters considered donating fabric masks to hospitals but learned that fabric cannot be sanitized, so they started selling handmade fabric masks from a local seamstress to raise money to buy surgical and N95 masks. In two weeks, they raised enough to donate and hand deliver 2,400 masks to Keck Hospital of USC and many other clinics.

Taylor said, “We delivered surgical masks to seven clinics. We are very thankful for all that they do.” To the health care workers, Taylor said, “Thank you for risking your lives and putting your health on the line to help other people. It really touches my heart.”

The sisters plan to continue to help any way they can, including more masks, more ball deliveries, and teaching even more children how to empower themselves and others.

Below: Jordyn and Taylor Jackson (front row, left) with Keck Medicine of USC staff and some of their donations.