What is the first thing you think of when you think of shoes? The brand? Color? Style? What about the fact that people wear shoes mainly to protect their feet? Ground-borne diseases such as hookworm, tetanus, and botulism can affect humans through soil if proper footwear is not worn. Not having shoes may not seem like a problem for the average student in Palm Beach County, but

it’s a huge problem internationally. That’s why Benjamin middle school math teacher, Mr. Tony Digiovanni, has partnered once again with Souls for Souls to help provide shoes to those who can’t afford them or who don’t have access to them.

“I found Soles4Souls because a friend of mine was playing basketball and we noticed he never had shoes, so originally some friends and I held a shoe drive just for him,” explained DiGiovanni. “I researched shoe drives and found Soles4Souls roughly five years ago, and when [the administration] announced we should all do advisory community service projects, I knew exactly what to do. So I decided to do shoe drives for Soles4Souls.”

This is the third year Mr. DiGiovanni and his advisory has sponsored the shoe drive at TBS. According to its website, (www.soles4souls.com) the organization is a “not-for-profit global social enterprise committed to fighting poverty through the collection and distribution of shoes and clothing.” The company originally started as a group to help people who had been victims of Hurricane Katrina in 2006. However, it’s president, Buddy Teaster, changed it into a full- time charity for people who need shoes. The organization has helped distribute 26 million pairs of shoes to those in need in 127 countries around the world and all 50 states in the U.S. What Soles4Souls does is exactly as their motto, “Wearing out poverty,” suggests. It gives shoes to underprivileged folks around the world, allowing adults to stay healthy and children to attend school. The hope is that it will help end the poverty cycle and maybe even bring some families completely out of poverty.

If underprivileged people have shoes, they are less likely to get sick, allowing them to work, attend school, and raise their families.
“This organization is very helpful,” said seventh grader Casey Zecca. “Whenever I donate shoes, I feel like I’m actually doing something good and helping. I don’t do many of the charities, but this is one of them.”

Mr. Digiovanni’s advisory’s collection of shoes lasted for three weeks and ended February 11. He estimates that approximately 200 pairs were collected during that time – a testament to the generosity and compassion of the TBS community. Soles4Souls an initiative that not only provides shoes to those less fortunate, but it also provides hope as well.