I belong to two different Facebook groups that are sewing masks to donate for free to those working on the front. People are working through their stash, making masks, and giving them away for free. Yes, sewing machines are difficult to find right now but not impossible. Since many stores are temporarily shut down, one needs to shop online and have the machine shipped...ugh! and shipping is delayed because so many people are doing their shopping online for everything including groceries.
It's exciting to see that people, both young and old, are sewing for the first time and yes, we hope they will continue to sew after the pandemic has ended. Several people have resurrected old sewing machines that had been in attics, basements, storage, etc. and are cranking out masks. Some are recruiting their spouse, children, and anyone nearby to assist. My guess is that we will have tons of new sewists, makers, quilters, etc.
There is discussion now, looking toward the future, about what to do with all the small scraps of quilter's cotton that will be left after the mask making has ended. We may be seeing quite a few very crazy quilt blocks happening in the coming months.