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As Facebook feeds fill with photos of empty supermarket shelves, piles of hoarded hand sanitizer and toilet paper being sold for several times its original value, a group of Saskatonians hopes the Internet can also show the better side of a city’s response to a feared pandemic.

Since the first presumptive cases of COVID-19 were announced in the province last week, good samaritans have organized ad hoc groups in cities across Canada to deliver supplies to the elderly, share resources and support their communities.

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After his classes were cancelled last week, University of Saskatchewan law student Austin Cooper set up a page on Facebook called YXE Response COVID 19, motivated by a sense of unease and a desire to help fellow resident of the city where he has lived for most his life.

“I was just looking at the world from my desk and wondering what I can do,” Cooper said.

Within days, he received messages from others who had the same idea. One, Jordan Marcoux, had already taken charge of helping with deliveries for the infirm and the elderly, who are especially vulnerable to the virus. Another law student, Will Hampton, also asked to get involved.