Tim Truesdale is committed to Christ’s admonition to let your light shine before men. He not only is a ministry leader but also an executive with Ecologix, which helps businesses convert to LED lighting and more efficient forms of energy.
And now, in the darkness of the COVID-19 pandemic, he and has company are helping bring a ray of hope. One of his company’s primary manufacturing plants informed them in April that they had two million filtering facial respirators in inventory and could airlift in an additional two million each day. This is the kind of mask that offers a filtration rate of 95 percent and is urgently needed by hospitals, medical and dental offices, nursing homes, food processing and first responders, among others.
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“There was no question for our team — we had to make the leap to address the critical need,” Truesdale said. “We all have friends and family working in these critical positions. None of us would want to tell anyone that their family member got sick due to a lack of adequate protection.
“We quickly put together a new venture to help us set up an online store – ECOHealthKC. We brought on an ecommerce company and a professional blogger to help us get the word out.”
Converting from producing energy-efficient products to face masks was only the beginning. Ecologix also wanted to do something to help the more than 33 million unemployed Americans, including thousands in the Kansas City area.
“We are working out plans to engage furloughed and unemployed friends to help us with packaging and shipping as a way to supplement their other income and stay busy and productive,” Truesdale said.
Last week, the company also partnered with a local company that manufactures disinfectants and hand sanitizers.
“We are offering a standard 80 percent hand sanitizer,” he said, “but we are also able to offer a cleansing wash and cleansing gel that highlight HOCL, which is a naturally occurring compound that has been used in cleaning hospital rooms for years. It’s also much gentler on hands and surfaces than straight alcohols or bleaches.”
Ecologix will continue seeking other ways to put its expertise to work as long as the need continues.
Tim Truesdale
“We are definitely on the lookout for any products and services that would answer a national demand for the everyday adjustments we are all making to live through the challenges that COVID presents,” Truesdale said. “On one hand, we want to be a one-stop-shop for businesses and nonprofits who need to provide increased protection for customers and staff. We also want to serve individuals who are taking a proactive approach to taking responsibility for protecting themselves and stopping the spread of the virus.“
He encourages other businesses leaders to think outside the box and find creative ways to serve those in need.
“We couldn’t feel be more blessed,” Truesdale said. “This most incredible opportunity was literally just dropped into our laps, almost as an afterthought. Our team was unanimous in committing to whatever pivot we needed to make to carry it out. And then we have been able to add some amazing partners along the way to help us ramp up miraculously quickly.
“I think when times get tough, it’s natural to try to duck inside a shell of what’s familiar and hunker down until the storms pass overhead. But we truly feel like this COVID 19 is a war effort, requiring all hands on deck to do whatever we can.”
As a Christian, he believes his company’s capacity to see a need and meet it is no coincidence.
“There’s the part we consider supernatural,” Truesdale said. “We are always on the lookout to see what God is doing and simply join in. It’s much easier to catch a wave and ride it in than create something on our own. That wave can always be unpredictable and it has the power to roll you and knock you down. But sometimes the only way forward is through the surf.”
For more information visit EcoHealthKC.
–Alan Goforth | Metro Voice