Happy Monday, Deac families. Am sure many of you saw the new recommendations coming out of the CDC about cloth masks. Great news here is that WFU researchers are playing a role in this research. Dr. Scott Segal, chairman of the anesthesiology department at Wake Forest Baptist Health, is quoted in a New York Times article about research on masks being done at The Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine. Kudos to the research team and to all the healthcare professionals at the School of Medicine and our hospital – and by extension, all healthcare workers everywhere.

Our Student Health Service wants to be sure that people understand the recommendation about cloth masks. There are recent studies that show many individuals may be shedding the virus with no symptoms or for a couple of days before they develop symptoms. A point of clarification is that some people will think wearing a cloth mask protects them from others, but in reality it is protecting others from them (just in case they are carrying but are asymptomatic). Here are some FAQs which we hope will clarify:

CDC updated recommendations concerning cloth face coverings

FAQ‘s about cloth face masks

How to use and make face coverings for this purpose

I wrote this last week but I continue to need your help. There are continued reports that WF students still in Winston-Salem (and living off campus in rented houses, etc.) are holding parties and are not maintaining appropriate social distance measures of 6′ between people. If your Deac is still in Winston, please, please talk to your Deacs  and stress the importance of staying home and limiting their contact with others. Remind them that social distancing applies to people you know, not just strangers at the grocery store. Everyone should stay 6′ away from other people (even when those people are your friends). Everyone should steer clear of groups of more than 10 people, even if they are your closest friends living in other homes or apartments. This is critical to help them – and the larger community – stay safe.

It’s beautiful weather here in Winston-Salem. High 70s-low 80s all week and mostly sunny. It’s very strange to think the weather can be so great in a time where so many are dealing with hardship and suffering. This weather reminded me of an April very long ago – back in 2001 – when we unveiled a student art project that was pretty spectacular.

Folks might remember the Cows on Parade public art project, where artists decorated fiberglass cows. We did a version of this where we had bigger-than-lifesize Demon Deacons. There were 20 of them. Each of the professional schools was alloted their own Deacon to decorate, and then the remainder were up for grabs in a design contest by undergraduates. For several weeks, the students all congregated at night to paint their Deacons, and then we had a grand unveiling in April. The student Deacons were auctioned off (with the proceeds going to the capital campaign as the students contribution).

The Signature Deacon was signed by any and all students on the Quad and it now resides in the Byrum Welcome Center for all to enjoy. It was a massively fun project. The Mucha Deacon is in the library atrium last I looked, and the Michelangelo Deacon (I think that is the name) is in the Benson Rotunda.

Here are a few views of our Deacons. Stay safe and well, Daily Deacdom.

Seven-foot-tall Demon Deacons await the final touches as they get ready for the Deacs on Parade to kick off the Wake Forest University capital campaign. (WFU/Ken Bennett) Wake Forest senior Jodi Nykun paints a model Demon Deacon in a campus warehouse on Thursday, April 5, 2001. The model, sponsored by the WFU Volunteer Service Coprs, will be part of the Deacs on Parade event that kicks off the new capital campaign later this month. Wake Forest students Kelly Jones, left, Michelle Johnson, and Han Shi work on a model Demon Deacon in a campus warehouse on Thursday, April 5, 2001. The model, sponsored by the WFU Baptist Student Union, will be part of the Deacs on Parade event that kicks off the new capital campaign later this month. The Golf Deacon

WFU kicks off its capital campaign with Deacons on Parade on the Quad on April 27, 2001. ©2001 Wake Forest University, Office of Creative Services. Photo by Ken Bennett. WFU kicks off its capital campaign with Deacons on Parade on the Quad on April 27, 2001. ©2001 Wake Forest University, Office of Creative Services. Photo by Ken Bennett. WFU kicks off its capital campaign with Deacons on Parade on the Quad on April 27, 2001. ©2001 Wake Forest University, Office of Creative Services. Photo by Ken Bennett. The Sequin DeaconThe Mucha Deacon (after Alphonse Mucha)

— by Betsy Chapman, Ph.D. (’92, MA ’94)

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