SOUTH WAYNE - Area churchgoers are helping the environment, and the homeless, one crochet hook at a time.
Women from sister churches Our Savior's and Jordan Lutheran churches are taking everyday plastic bags and crocheting them into Mercy Mats, handmade plastic mats used for protection from the elements and a place to sleep for those without a home. They then donate the mats to Porchlight, a Madison-based organization which provides assistance for homeless people in Dane County.
"I mean, the cost is pretty much a pair of scissors, a crochet hook and your time," said Mia Holverson of Woodford, one of the group members. "And I just feel with our community and all the stuff that goes to waste, there shouldn't be homelessness."
The group donated five mats at the end of December. They have finished four more since then. Materials are gathered by the women through use in their own daily lives and by any donations they receive from others.
Teena Fey of South Wayne had been making Mercy Mats for about six years. She first saw the mats being created during a Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ conference in Tomah and learned the skill herself. When she started talking to Holverson and the rest of the women, they latched on to the idea immediately.
"The first night when I showed them how to do it we just had a blast," Fey said. "We just talked nonstop about everything and anything."
The 4-by-6-foot mats are nothing less than a team effort. Before they can even begin to crochet, the bags have to be straightened out. Then the material needs to be cut into strips, tied and finally rolled into balls of what they refer to as "plarn," a term describing plastic being used like yarn.
It takes anywhere from 700 to 900 bags and approximately 200 hours to make each mat.
The women meet at 9 a.m. every Wednesday at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in South Wayne and work on the mats until noon. A number of the hobbyists also work on the mats during downtime at home. They said anyone is welcome to join the group and help whenever they can. People are also encouraged to donate plastic bags.
Fey and her family lost everything they had in a house fire in 2009, which has fueled her passion to help people who are without a home of their own.
"It's important to them, like a bed," Fey said. "Which is something you and I take for granted every day."
Women from sister churches Our Savior's and Jordan Lutheran churches are taking everyday plastic bags and crocheting them into Mercy Mats, handmade plastic mats used for protection from the elements and a place to sleep for those without a home. They then donate the mats to Porchlight, a Madison-based organization which provides assistance for homeless people in Dane County.
"I mean, the cost is pretty much a pair of scissors, a crochet hook and your time," said Mia Holverson of Woodford, one of the group members. "And I just feel with our community and all the stuff that goes to waste, there shouldn't be homelessness."
The group donated five mats at the end of December. They have finished four more since then. Materials are gathered by the women through use in their own daily lives and by any donations they receive from others.
Teena Fey of South Wayne had been making Mercy Mats for about six years. She first saw the mats being created during a Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ conference in Tomah and learned the skill herself. When she started talking to Holverson and the rest of the women, they latched on to the idea immediately.
"The first night when I showed them how to do it we just had a blast," Fey said. "We just talked nonstop about everything and anything."
The 4-by-6-foot mats are nothing less than a team effort. Before they can even begin to crochet, the bags have to be straightened out. Then the material needs to be cut into strips, tied and finally rolled into balls of what they refer to as "plarn," a term describing plastic being used like yarn.
It takes anywhere from 700 to 900 bags and approximately 200 hours to make each mat.
The women meet at 9 a.m. every Wednesday at Our Savior's Lutheran Church in South Wayne and work on the mats until noon. A number of the hobbyists also work on the mats during downtime at home. They said anyone is welcome to join the group and help whenever they can. People are also encouraged to donate plastic bags.
Fey and her family lost everything they had in a house fire in 2009, which has fueled her passion to help people who are without a home of their own.
"It's important to them, like a bed," Fey said. "Which is something you and I take for granted every day."