For eight weeks, 15 or so local youth participated in the first-ever Pay It Forward program at the Church of the Plains in Edgar.
The afterschool program started because Nancy Overturf, of Edgar, wanted to show younger generations what Pay It Forward really means.
It’s not always paying for someone else’s meal who’s in line behind you, but also opening the door for others.
From April 1 to their May 20 final performance, students were taught how to take the love, grace, and kindness God gave them and learn from them in the form of paying it forward.
Each meeting time, students learned a bible story and then did a craft coinciding with that story.
One of the craft projects was a sleeping mat; the project was headed by Carla Gunn, who first began making the mats in Grand Island.
The mats are used for the homeless and/or shipped overseas for people who have dirt floors.
Made out of 500-700 plastic grocery bags, the mats help keep out moisture and bugs. Gunn added that the mats can last from 15-20 years, and can be washed.
She said for one person, it takes about 36 hours to make one of the mats, but for the sake of time, they used four people over the age of 10.
To make the bags, Gunn orders pre-made looms that are large enough for a person, then, once the grocery bags are cut into strips—what Gunn calls plarn (plastic yarn)— those strips are then woven in an over-under pattern and secured in place.
The two mats that the afterschool students worked on will go to the Salvation Army.
During their final performance May 20, students shared bible stories and verses, and sang songs. Some of the stories included Adam and Eve, which volunteer Cailee Tripe said taught them that even when we fall short, God still loves us. Other stories were about Moses and David and Goliath.
Group songs included “He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands,” “Jesus Loves Me,” and “We Cry Out.” Volunteer Hannah Harms also sang “Hold on to Me.”
To finish out the evening, Church of the Plain Pastor Stuart Davis told the kids, “It doesn’t matter how old you are, you have things to share with others by paying it forward.”
