Leander girl knits in hopes of helping others stay warm

By Joseph M. de Leon Monday, 14 December 2009

LEANDER — Sarah Mathys says she has always felt like an entrepreneur. Over the past few years, she has held bake sales, learned to raise money and discovered the value of hard work.

 

Now she has turned her talents into a nonprofit called Natural Disaster Knitting that makes and collects warm clothing for people recovering from traumatic events. The 11-year-old seventh grader at Leander Middle School won a $500 grant earlier this year to set up the organization.

“It means a lot because now I can do more to help people who need help,” Sarah said. “Keeping people warm may seem like something small, but it can really go a long way by making people feel comfortable.”

Do Something Inc., which provides tools and resources for young adults to convert their ideas into positive action, gave Sarah the grant and flew her to the Boston Children’s Museum for a three-day training in September where she learned strategies for making her nonprofit work.

To apply for the grant, she wrote an essay about her would-be organization’s goals, prepared a budget and requested a recommendation from Janki Makecha, youth services librarian at Leander Public Library where Sarah often volunteers.

“She’s here every day during the summer for our summer reading program and she’s very good about talking with the kids, she’s very dependable and very mature beyond her age,” Makecha said. “When I get busy, she always takes the initiative to step where ever she sees there is a need.”

Sarah translates that work ethic into making Natural Disaster Knitting a success. She used grant money for knitting supplies and to set up donation boxes throughout Leander to collect warm clothing and blankets. Drop off locations include Jim Plain Elementary School, Leander Middle School and Leander Public Library.

The nonprofit has collected more than 100 pieces of clothing and Sarah has knitted a scarf and hat to help people in need stay warm. She gives donations to the natural disaster branch of the Salvation Army.

Origin of a nonprofit

When Sarah won a sewing kit from the Cedar Park Public Library reading program three years ago, the first thing she made was a little red felt bird. It now hangs as a Christmas ornament on the family tree.

Learning how to join fabric with thread inspired her to learn how to crochet and, more recently, how to knit.

Sarah recalls watching the news one day in September 2008 when the TV screen was filled with images of destruction left in a storm’s wake.

“Right after Hurricane Ike, a lot of refugees came to our area,” she said. “I remember they closed our school to help them. I remember thinking ‘If the school can do that, so can I.’ So I did.”

Now Sarah is working to recruit and train volunteers to help knit scarves and hats. She brings knitting needles and yarn to the Leander Public Library every Wednesday in hopes others in the community will help her keep others warm.

“People don’t knit as much as they used to, so that’s why I’m offering free classes and approaching nursing homes in hopes they will help,” Sarah said. “Anyone can help. All you have to do is give your time.”