Coronavirus News: Blind-video dating can keep you socially distant while finding love

Friday, April 3, 2020

Calling all singles... 'Catch feelings, not COVID' with this blind-video dating approach

What started out as an experiment, has turned into the latest dating craze that has people from around the country looking for a connection during the coronavirus pandemic.

BABYLON, New York (WABC) -- 'Catch Feelings, Not COVID' is the latest online dating craze that has people in quarantine all over the country excited to connect with others via blind video speed dating.

The founders, Chelsea Mandel and Amanda Shane do not come from a matchmaking background, but they wanted to create a minimalistic approach to matching pairs that have similar interests.

TO sign up, you simply fill out the 'Catch Feelings, Not COVID' Google Forms Questionnaire and let Mandel and Shane find your virtual soulmate.

"It's a way to bring some joy and foster human connections during this period of uncertainty," said Mandel.

The questionnaire includes topics ranging from hobbies, political parties, religion and various other questions on how you would describe yourself towards others.

Every night Mandel and Shane look through their excel spreadsheet to scroll through each answer to find their nearly perfect match for their blind date.

More than 500 users have already signed up and the list keeps on growing.

"I think everyone's looking for that human contact and I've been pleasantly surprised, to be honest," said user, Bryan Leib. "With the women, I have spoken to, I'm excited to meet them in person once we get passed this unfortunate pandemic that we are all going through right now."

Each date takes place via FaceTime or WhatsApp and users have just 15 minutes with their match before the date is over. The first date is only 15 minutes so that users can see whether or not they would like to see this person again or find a better match.

Mandel and Shane are already expanding across the country to help more hopefuls find a connection during this trying time.

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