Making Mats for Louisville's Houseless Population
Houselessness in the United States is, unfortunately, a common and growing problem. This is also a complex topic that Louisville experiences as well. Due to a variety of issues, people can experience houselessness. Some of these include, food and housing insecurity, rising cost of rent, inflation, mental and physical health issues, the pandemic and many more systemic problems. While no one is immune to a shifting economy, especially in the time of a global pandemic, our most vulnerable are impacted at a far greater rate.
In 2021, over 10,000 people experienced houseless in Louisville and that number continues to grow. As stated above, living costs are rising at a record rate, making it harder for people to afford rent. In Louisville, the average cost of a two-bedroom home is $1,226, requiring a minimum-wage worker ($7.25/hour) to work 97 hours per week to afford their rent. This simply isn’t viable for most and the cost is only going to increase.
Systemic issues like houselessness, require work both on a political level and a grassroots level. Coalition for the Homeless is an organization doing that work in Louisville currently to help some of our most vulnerable. Check out their website to learn more about houselessness in our area and what can be done to help,
Staff Micah and Seka at Reach’s day program are always looking for ways to involve the participants at the program in volunteer work. The current project is making waterproof mats for houseless folks in the Louisville community. This project is a way to teach compassion, giving, and showing how small acts of kindness can effect change.
These plastic mats are an easy project that many of the program participants have been able to get involved with. Seka and Micah crochet the plastic yarn (“plarn”) into the mats. Seka has also created straps for easy transport of the mats. Audrey assists the participants in organizing, cutting, and tying the plarn together. This is an essential preparation step so that the mats can be crocheted. The plastic mats are a project that many volunteers around the country have also been able to create for houseless folks in their own communities. One organization, Bags to Beds, has been creating these mats since 2017.
If you are interested in learning how to make your own, here are some videos on YouTube that teach how to make the plarn and to crochet the mats. Here are some examples:
GM models a completed mat.
Seka is pictured crocheting a mat.
Want to get involved? Email Micah at eganam@reachoflouisville.com for more information! The program is currently taking donations of grocery bags to continue making as many plastic mats as possible. This is an ongoing project with no end-date.