Tow women hold handmade signs
LNK community ambassador Alexis Mayse (right) and Rileigh Hurd (left) walk through the Cultiva Labs parking lot with their signs about why they wear masks.

Spray painted messages of “Together, we will beat this” line the sidewalks for its citizens to see throughout Lincoln. The people behind those signs can be found wearing a face mask promoting the LNK is Greater Than project. 

LNK is Greater Than was launched in August 2020 by Archrival, a local creative agency, to raise awareness in the Lincoln community. It’s goal is to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in Lincoln. Overall, the response from Lincoln citizens has been mainly positive, according to LNK community ambassador Nick Castner. 

Castner said the push for this project came from a statistic that 41.6% of positive COVID-19 tests came from the 20 to 29 age range; this age group only accounts for 18.5% of the overall population. 

The project has ambassadors from ages 20 to 29 promoting the project on social media and around the community. 

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LNK community ambassador Alex Fernando sprays a LNK is Greater Than stencil outside on East Campus. Fernando and other ambassadors strategically placed the messages in popular areas around East Campus for students to see on their way to classes.
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LNK community ambassador Alex Fernando cleans off the spray chalk from a stencil outside of the Recreation and Wellness Center on East Campus on Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. Fernando spent nearly two hours with other ambassadors marking locations around East Campus before heading to Nebraska Wesleyan University later that night.
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LNK community ambassador Alex Fernando picks out some stencils from his car to place around East Campus on Monday, Sept. 14, 2020. Fernando loaded and uploaded cans of spray chalk and project stencils throughout the night for other community ambassadors to use throughout the campus.
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A freshly chalked LNK is Greater Than stencil outside of the Recreation and Wellness Center on East Campus. Sidewalks outside of the College of Dentistry, College of Law, East Campus Union and dining halls were also marked.
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Signs are laid in the grass outside of St. Teresa Thrift Shop on Tuesday, Sept. 15. Community ambassadors spent the afternoon finding places for photo opportunities to post on their personal Instagram feeds for their followers to learn more about the project.

“Social media in general has amplified people’s voices and it has also created a sense of community,” Castner said.

Castner and other LNK community ambassadors spend nearly 10 hours each week creating content for social media platforms like Instagram and completing projects around the area to create a better understanding of the importance of wearing a mask and social distancing.

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    LNK Community Ambassador Sadie Lamplot holds up her sign for why she wears her mask outside of St. Teresa Thrift Shop building on Tuesday, Sept. 1. The LNK is Greater Than project is important to me because my grandma actually passed away before the pandemic, Lamplot said. I want people to be more knowledgeable and cautious about everything when it comes to being safe during this time.
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    LNK Community Ambassador Maddie Haden poses for a photo with her sign about why she wears a mask. Haden said she joined this project because she wants to protect more than herself. You never know who you come in contact with, Haden said. Haden hopes that being a part of this project will show her friends and family how passionate she is. She has made friendships through LNK is Greater Than and said they are all working together to make this mission possible.

It’s really, really simple,” said LNK community ambassador Maddie Haden.  “It’s a simple thing we can do together to ultimately defeat something bigger than ourselves.”

Maddie Washburn

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