DuPont announced on Dec. 6 an expanded partnership with Team Rubicon, a veteran-led humanitarian organization that serves communities before, during and after disasters and crises. This deeper partnership includes donations of Tyvek protective apparel, personal protective equipment applications training and educational support, safety-oriented content for their website, access to safety personnel, potential volunteers and awareness-building inside and outside of DuPont.

Team Rubicon mobilizes their volunteers, called “Greyshirts,” to communities worldwide that have experienced disasters large and small. Support ranges from cleanup efforts and rebuilding homes to delivering food and administering vaccines to underserved communities during COVID-19.

“DuPont is proud to expand its multi-pronged collaboration with Team Rubicon, which allows us to contribute much more than the essential protection of our Tyvek garments,” said Patrick McCrummen, Global Leader of Community Impact at DuPont. “DuPont has the deep technical expertise in safety and hygiene coupled with our employees’ commitment to volunteerism. This partnership effectively delivers on mission success at a time when people are in their darkest hours.”

The additional support offered by the expanded partnership will enable Team Rubicon to keep additional inventory of protective garments on hand and avoid sourcing PPE locally, where they could be subject to disrupted supply chains. This allows volunteers to stay fully protected from the start while clearing out affected houses and, in turn, enables disaster survivors to potentially stay in their homes rather than moving to a shelter.

At Team Rubicon’s 10th annual Salute to Service Awards in New York City in November, Tyvek was recognized as “Essential Gear in the Field.”

“We were honored to be included in this distinguished list and are proud to support Team Rubicon in their dedication to our nation’s veterans and their continued service to our communities,” said Elizabeth Briggs, Tyvek Garments Americas Marketing leader.

Founded in 2010 by a small group of military veterans and medical and emergency response personnel, Team Rubicon recognized early on that veterans’ military training, service and experience make them uniquely qualified to respond to disasters. Welcoming both veterans and non-veterans as volunteers, the organization has grown into an international operation with more than 150,000 Greyshirts. Recent volunteer projects have included ongoing flood response efforts in Kentucky; remediation efforts in Florida; and rebuilding hundreds of homes in locations from Selma, Alabama, to Haines, Alaska.