I have recently had the privilege of befriending the amazing Mary Allen of Eagle Corps Services. I have known Mary for over a year and was introduced to her husband Richard and their company when they presented at a Rotary function last fall. I was very impressed with the products they offered and how they are changing safety in our community.
Eagle Corps Services, LLC is a minority-owned small business owned by Richard Allen, a service disabled veteran who has over 35 years of experience leading safety, security, fire, and emergency response programs. He has successfully run large, complex security and emergency services organizations at major Department of Energy and Department of Defense sites. His team has leadership experience in accomplishing challenging goals and meeting diverse mission requirements under demanding timelines.
Necessity Leads to a Business
The safety products Eagle offers are unmatched in their market. But the real story of this company lies within Mary and her journey into the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) market. Mary first dipped her big toe into PPE when her husband Richard became ill. Last fall he was diagnosed with cancer and had to have a kidney removed. Mary reflects on that time and shares with me some memories. “We have two grandchildren and Richard could not see them because they were in public school. We had to come up with a way for them to come visit him. We had them dress up like medical people, in a lab coat, gloves, face shield, and shoe coverings, so they could come in and see their grandpa.”
There was no alternative to wearing protection — Mary could not risk the health of her husband. She also could not afford the exorbitant price for PPE. Mary sat down and began to research how to acquire what she needed. In the end, she had to buy in bulk. “I did a source search. I had to buy in bulk. 5000 of this, 2500 of that. So I bought 5000 masks, kiddie shields that had characters on them. The package was in increments of 10, with 10 different characters on each of the shields. One day my grandson was Mickey Mouse, and one day he was Superman.”
“At the time the nurses said, ‘Do you sell those?’ And I said No. And they said ‘Well, you should.’”
And the Business Grows
Mary began to look for organizations that might be interested in the shields. Her grandson loved wearing the shields, so she started with his day care center in Atlanta. Mary recalls when she first approached them, “They thought I was crazy. I told them the kids are going to wear the face shields. They are going to want to be the characters. Each child could rotate what character he was each day. Then you could clean the shields with Lysol at the end of the week and they would be ready for the next week. They bought 500.”
Mary tells me, “I kept expanding. When COVID-19 hit, I had a friend in my sorority who graduated from dental school, and she needed N95 masks for oral surgery. I acquired the masks and sent them to her. She posted it on a closed Facebook page. It was also posted on the affiliated fraternity page. One of the guys in the fraternity placed his first order for $27,000. It really caught on in the dental field because of the connections with my sorority. In the heat of COVID-19 I received calls from Texas, Atlanta, Maryland, Mississippi, and Washington DC.
I started to get calls from everywhere.”
Then a dentures company called from the corporate office and signed up for a monthly order. A dialysis company with over 400 locations in the US contacted Mary and placed orders. She is in the process of meeting with their diversity person to go national. “When we visit a dental company, we take a care package — PPE from head to toe. We include a head bonnet, gloves, shoe covers, hand sanitizer, and a first aid kit and say ‘A gift for you.’”
After dental, it made sense for Mary to solicit medical offices, and she has only scratched the surface. When the state opened visitation for nursing homes and assisted living facilities, the phone started ringing. Mary’s brilliant mind came up with the Compassionate Visit Kit — everything you need to visit a loved one and keep him or her safe. Why did she come up with this kit? Again, from personal experience. She wanted her sons and her grandchildren to be able to visit her mother, who actually inspired another new product.
Staying Safe in Church
When Mary first shows me the church pew sneeze guards, I am in awe. The sneeze guard looks like a clear plastic fin. It twists and folds up in a round, 12-inch diameter bag. You unzip the bag, pull out the sneeze guard, and watch it unfold into its expanded shape. Designed by Mary and engineered by a friend, it can be secured to long benches as well as individual chairs. Mary tells me, “Do you know how I know about this? I will tell you why — older folks like my mom, who is 93, need to get back to church. We developed this sneeze guard for that reason. You can put all the PPE items in a travel pouch that you can carry with you.” I hold up the guard and I immediately want to take two and carry them around with me. It makes me feel very safe to have the sneeze guard on either side of me. I feel protected, and I am protecting other people as well.
The most amazing innovations come from our personal life experiences. I have felt the most overwhelmingly grateful moments of thanksgiving since COVID-19 impacted our area in March. My heart goes out to all who have been adversely affected, to those who have lost loved ones, and to businesses that have lost revenue. I remain optimistic when I come across amazing companies like Eagle Corps Services. We welcome Mary into the Bella family as a new contributor. Safety is a key part of life, and Mary will share ideas each month about how to keep your loved ones safe.
