Democracy Dies in Darkness

Retired Kansas farmer who sent an N95 mask to Cuomo gets an award he’s waited decades for: A college degree

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May 6, 2020 at 8:49 p.m. EDT
Dennis Ruhnke holds two of his remaining N95 masks as he stands with his wife, Sharon, at their home near Troy, Kan., last month. (Charlie Riedel/AP)

Dennis Ruhnke had a mask to spare.

He had found five of them while digging through some old farm equipment — five of the coveted, medical-grade N95 respirators that nobody could seem to get their hands on, not even the federal government. He used to wear them while cleaning out the grain bins. Now people talked about them on the news each night like they were worth their weight in gold.