Gap girl uses idle time to do good

Lylah Fleming is only 10 but has an old soul, according to her mother Myranda Fleming’s aunt, Rita Surratt.

Lylah, whose family recently moved from Clintwood to Big Stone Gap, loves to cook, plants seedlings for her own garden and soon will get her own chicks to raise, according to Surratt. “She’s very proud of what she likes to do and nothing is too challenging for her to give it a try!”

Lylah’s family — including mom, dad Ryan Fleming and sisters Sophie and Josie — wasn’t surprised when she came to her mom and said she wanted to do something that would help the community while the virus outbreak has kids staying home from school.

With a neighbor’s help, they gathered supplies and started sewing face masks to be donated to local hospitals, nursing homes, doctor’s offices, veterinary facilities and other providers.

Lylah has taken some donations and plowed them back into making more masks. Within a few days, she had made 55 masks and set to work delivering them to local medical providers.

“We are so proud of this young lady and her determination to do something good during this crisis,” Surratt says.