Sask. sisters warm hearts by handing out reusable shopping bags

Two sisters from Vanscoy, Sask. are hoping to make a difference for the environment one reusable shopping bag at a time and warming hearts in the process.

For Tanisha, 10, and Melissa Aktar, 8, spending a few minutes outside a Saskatoon department store handing out reusable shopping bags is rewarding time spent.

They first noticed that their parents had a lot of reusable shopping bags lying around the house and thought they could put them to good use.

“Since we have too many bags, we like to give them out to random people,” Melissa told CTV News.

They started the project in the winter, getting the idea after studying about the environment in school and decided they wanted to make a difference.

“Mother nature can see the earth and what we’re doing to the environment. We just don’t want to waste, and Mother Nature doesn’t want to waste,” they said.

They say people don’t always take a bag, but they’re used to it and just roll with it.

“Sometimes they turn it down because sometimes we forget to say it’s free, but sometimes they ask us why and we say we have too many and it’s for free,” Tanisha said.

They usually bring between 15 and 20 bags each and depending on the day, they get rid of them quickly.

“Probably in like ten or fifteen minutes.”

• Get the CTV News app for Sask. breaking news alerts and top stories 

It’s the great reaction they get from the majority of people that make it all worth it, but a few times, they’ve even gotten a tip of a couple of dollars.

“We sometimes get money, and we sometimes say 'no' and they insist.”

One shopper even pitched in and wanted to help so he went back to his vehicle to donate his extra bags to the cause.

The sisters will soon be busy with activities and school but hope to continue the work into the fall because they say it just makes them happy.

“Whenever they smile and give us hugs, we feel so nice,” Tanisha said.

They hope that by sharing their story, other kids see it and get inspired to do something good for the environment or another cause.