Milk Producer - March 2009 - (Page 54)

THEBACKFORTY By Sharon Laidlaw Milk bags keep on giving Church program that turns milk bags into sleeping mats inspires students, local community W hat can you do with 250 milk bags, a group of sincere, dedicated volunteers and a handful of crochet needles? Make sleeping mats to send to Third World countries to protect children from parasites or having to sleep on the bare ground. It’s time-consuming work—collecting, washing, cutting and then crocheting some 250-plus milk bags into one mat, says program leader Trudy Csernyei, but well worth the effort. Csernyei leads a group of parishioners at St. Paul’s the Apostle church in Burlington, Ont., who get together once a week to wash and cut the outer milk bag, which holds the three smaller one-litre bags, into two-inch strips to be crocheted into the mats. Every Monday, Csernyei and her group gather in the church’s boardroom for an hour and a half to be inspired, as Csernyei puts it. “Everyone is welcome, whether they know how to crochet or not. People get inspired when they attend the sessions because they know they are helping others. It brings the community together,” she says. The mats measure three and a half feet by five feet and are made primarily for child en aged 10 and up. r Csernyei says her group often gift wraps the mats with other essential items and toiletries. “The mats are very lightweight and easy to wash. Often the children in these countries have to walk long distances to get to a river to wash their mat,” she adds. About every other month, they’ve Pictured above, Louisa Rossi and Trudy Csernyei, right. Below, Rossi and Csernyei pose with group of volunteers from St. Paul’s the Apostle church in Burlington, Ont. crocheted enough mats and bags to send via Canadian Food for Children, a charitable organization that distributes supplies for hungry and needy people in developing countries. Louisa Rossi, a stay-at-home mom who visits schools and teaches stu- dents how to cut and crochet the mats, says the students love to learn how to crochet. “It is a tremendous gift for them. It helps raise their self-esteem and for many it has become an enjoyable lunchtime activity,” she says. Rossi visits elementary and secondary schools in the Greater Toronto Area. She teaches for 45 minutes, and even brings her own supplies, including crochet needles, which she purchases herself to distribute free to the classes. Rossi has also uploaded a four-part demonstration video on YouTube showing how to cut and crochet the milk bags. “Having the videos on YouTube allows me to reach more people without having to physically go to their location to show them how it’s done,” she says. Rossi offers to mail viewers startup kits that she has pre-knit for beginners. “All they have to do is pick up from where I left off. It’s very easy,” she says. It takes about 10 hours for Rossi or Csernyei to complete a mat “but that is because we are experienced knitters. It would take a beginner about 20 hours or more,” says Rossi. Csernyei also points out the environmental benefit of helping divert hundreds of milk bags from landfills. “I was told the milk bags last for about eight years in a landfill,” she says. “I wish we could do the same with grocery bags. We’ve tried to crochet them but they are very hard on the hands. Besides, the children love to receive the colourful milk bag sleeping mats.” 54 | March 2009 | MilkPRODUCER

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Milk Producer - March 2009

Milk Producer - March 2009
Contents
Editor's Notes
DFO Chair's Message
Dairy Update
DFC Promotion
Farm Finance
P5Pool Update
Issues Update
Weathering the Storm
Research
Applied Science
Ruminations
Markets
New 'N' Noted
Back Forty

Milk Producer - March 2009