Area Church Crochets Plastic Bags into Mats for Homeless

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A group of Newhall church members is using plastic bags to crochet sleeping mats for homeless people.

Women belonging to the group at St. John Lutheran Church say they started making the mats more than a year ago. They asked the church to donate plastic bags to help supply their project, and say they have never had a shortage of materials.

The women cut the bags, tie them and wrap them up into balls of plastic yarn to make the mats.

The church members have donated the mats to homeless people in Chicago and at the Mission of Hope in Cedar Rapids.