(NEWS10) — As ski areas shut down early across the country to prevent the spread of the coronavirus , skiers and snowboarders are finding new ways to use their passion to help medical workers on the front lines.

It’s called Goggles For Docs, and it’s all an effort to get either new or used ski goggles to healthcare workers who don’t have eye protection as they care for COVID-19 patients

“The request from a doctor looking for goggles came from one of my ski coaches at Catamount, Karin Tanenbaum,” Co-Founder and owner of Berkshire and Catamount ski areas, Jon Schaefer, said. “And she forwarded it to our group of friends and coworkers and that email went viral.”

One viral email has now resulted into over 12,000 ski goggles.

“Interest exploded from there, so at that point we decided to build a website and start connecting people with their goggles to facilities across the country,” Schaefer said.

Here’s how it works – on their website, you’re able to help out any state and hospital. You can prepare your goggles to be shipped out to specific locations and directly to hospitals or they have several drop-off locations listed. However, they prefer you mail directly if possible as it’ll get to the workers faster.

They’re also able to track how many goggles are currently still needed. As the days and weeks go by, Schaefer says the number is only growing.

“We’re not finding hospitals they find us. we’re not finding new skiers, the skiers are finding us through social sharing,” Schaefer said. “And we’re in over 20 states and have helped hundreds of hospitals at this point and hundreds of more will be in the queue this week I guarantee it.”

If you’re looking to help out online, click here. Drop-off locations within the Capital Region can be found at Alpin Haus in both Amsterdam and Clifton Park.