Better bags in Barryville

250 reusable bags created by volunteers

By SANDY LONG

BARRYVILLE, NY — By 9:30 in the morning, sewing machines were humming quietly and pinners were plying heavy cotton fabric swatches at the pins circle as 16-year-old Erika Vorstadt oversaw the creation of 250 reusable bags being assembled by friends, family members and volunteers from the community.

The project, “Erika’s Better Bags,” is the culmination of Vorstadt’s Girl Scout Gold Award, and received support in the form of an Environmental Demonstration Grant from Sullivan Renaissance in the amount of $1,000. “It was so great that they awarded this money,” said Vorstadt. “We used it to purchase everything from fabric to labels to pins.”

Vorstadt was assisted by her mother, Susan, in organizing the effort. “She was such a great help,” said the Eldred Central School student. The pair believe in the importance of finding a solution to the problem of plastic shopping bags. “They’re like tumbleweeds along the roads, they sit in landfills for many years and they harm animals,” said Erika.

As volunteers stitched seams and attached straps, some chatted amicably while others sampled homemade baked goods. “We need to change our thinking. One reusable bag can save 1,000 plastic bags,” Erika said. The bags will be given away on September 21 at 2:00 p.m. in front of the Pecks Market in Eldred. To receive a free bag, one must bring 25 plastics bags to trade for one of Erika’s Better Bags, limit one per family.