MONMOUTH, Ill. — Inside his house in a quiet Monmouth neighborhood, David Simmons has been quietly making his own noise.
"I just love making, and making whatever I possibly could, because with 3D printers I could make cool things that other people have designed, I could modify those cool things or I could design cool things myself," David said.
When the pandemic began, David heard the Cass County Health Department was looking for face shields.
So, David, an 8th grader at Immaculate Conception School in Monmouth, got to work.
"There was a YouTube video that showed someone 3D printing these face shields, and I thought I had a 3D printer, I know there's need," David said.
David said he uses his 3D printer to create the front portion. The shield itself is a overhead transparency, similar to what teachers might use in a classroom. An elastic band is attached at the end.
In all, David said he's distributed about 150 face shields in the last year.
"He knew there was a shortage of PPE, particularly in the kinda rural area where we're located and he just thought maybe if I can print some of this stuff I can start to make some sort of an impact," said Bob Simmons, David's dad.
"Now with the 10,000 dollars, now we'll certainly give it to people for free," David added.
A physician at the Cass County Health Department nominated David for the "Future of Good" program, according to David. David was among three winners chosen, with a $10,000 prize so he can make even more face shields.
"There have been so many things the community has given to me and it's nice to think that people say I'm giving back," David said.
David Simmons is giving back with this grant, so he can put the money where his mouth is.
David said demand has declined as the pandemic has gone on, but has enough supplies to still make more.