St. Stephen Parish group uses plastic strips to crochet sleeping mats for those experiencing homelessness
Armed with scissors and size N crochet hooks, crafty Catholics gather in the rectory basement at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in St. Louis every Monday, ready to do their part for people experiencing homelessness.
Out come boxes upon boxes of plastic shopping bags.
The Plarn Patrol — named for the plastic “yarn” they use — turns the used plastic bags into sleeping mats for people on the streets.
The members are quick to divide the labor. Some start smoothing the bags flat, while others cut them into strips, tie the strips together and roll the length into volleyball-sized balls. Some work their crochet hooks in and out, a row of single chain stitches followed by double-crochet.
“It’s so purposeful, taking out of the environment things that could be devastating and helping that by repurposing it for something useful,” Sister Suzanne Giblin, CSJ, said.
The Plarn Patrol started in summer 2022 at Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish and continued when IHM was subsumed into St. Stephen Protomartyr Parish. It’s part of the parish’s Serve Together initiative, which connects parishioners with a variety of service opportunities.
Sister Suzanne learned about plarn sleeping mats from a fellow Sister of St. Joseph of Carondelet. The sister was looking for people who knew how to crochet — which Sister Suzanne does — and they then connected with interested parishioners at IHM.
“It’s become not just a work group, but a real community, and I love that,” Sister Suzanne said. “We laugh a lot together, we pray together.”
Each mat takes about 600-700 bags to complete, and the patterns are different every time. Since most plastic shopping bags are tan or white, members are excited to get different colored bags like yellow, pink or blue. The finished mats, which measure 3 feet wide and 6 feet long, are taken to St. Patrick Center to be distributed.
The group took a field trip to St. Patrick Center to deliver finished mats and was encouraged to hear that the mats are sought-after items, Plarn Patrol member Mary Raber said.
“On that field trip, we were introduced to the outreach group as ‘the people who make the mats,’” she said. “And I was thinking they might just say, ‘oh, what mats?’ But they didn’t — they said, ‘oh wow, you make the mats!’”
Not everyone in the group crochets, Raber noted. Raber manages the stock of plastic bags and does some cutting. Others flatten, cut or tie, preparing the plarn for those who do know how to crochet.
Ginny Wunderlich got involved by simply saving bags to donate to the group, she said. But after another member invited her to a Monday meeting, she started participating regularly and even learned how to crochet for the first time.
“It’s helping the environment; it’s definitely helping the homeless,” she said. “And all of us have become like a family too, you know? We care about each other.”
Theresa Angel moved back to St. Louis in 2023 and joined the group after reading about it in the parish bulletin.
“Because of orthopedic problems, there’s not a whole lot I could do in terms of service, but this was something I could do. I just have to sit here and crochet,” she said. “…Pope Francis wanted us to save the environment, so it helps there, and it helps the homeless, and it uses a skill that I have.”
Nancy Reed agreed, citing her own mobility issues. “I can’t go down to St. Patrick Center, so to be able to help from a distance is really nice.”
As word of the group has spread, they’ve started receiving more and more donations of plastic bags. An employee of SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital hosted a bag collection competition, donating several boxes to the Plarn Patrol that still haven’t run out. They pass along any bags they can’t use — ones that are too thick to make plarn, for example — to the St. Anthony of Padua Food Pantry, making sure they don’t go to waste.
“It’s people helping people, all the way along,” Sister Suzanne said.
The Plarn Patrol also recently hosted an interactive demonstration during a parish Donut Sunday, inviting parishioners to come see the process and try it out for themselves. While many people can’t make the meetings at 1 p.m. on Mondays, they can still help by collecting bags, flattening them, cutting them or even crocheting at home, Raber said.
At a recent summer meeting, Raber led a prayer over a few finished mats, a tradition before packing them away to be delivered to St. Patrick Center.
“In Ephesians, St. Paul says we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared us in advance to do,” Raber said.
“That these mats would be a blessing to the people who receive them — that their beauty would bring joy — that they would be a reminder of Your care — that their comfort will bring restful sleep — that our work together will keep us mindful of the needs of our neighbors. We pray to the Lord.”
>> Plarn Patrol
The Plarn Patrol at St. Stephen Protomartyr Parish turns used plastic shopping bags into sleeping mats for people experiencing homelessness. No experience is needed to participate. To get involved by making plarn, crocheting mats or both, contact Mary Raber at maryraber@gmail.com.
