Students Still Helping Hurricane Victims Via Shoe Donations
Members of Ms. McAllister’s eighth-grade advisory (left to right) Owen Gelberd, Sydney Steinger, Ella Hayes, Cameron Salehi, and Jakob Kroll pose in Ms. Mcallister’s room with the bags of shoes collected so far.
According to its website, soles4souls.org, the Soles4Souls organization was founded in 2006 to help the less fortunate get shoes to protect them from diseases. Since that time, 30 million shoes, both new and old, have been donated. Not only does this organization, based in Nashville, Tennessee, help those in America, but in 127 other countries, too. Those shoes that are not used for wearing are given to entrepreneurs so they may generate income.
The organization basically takes the used shoes they get and donates them to small entrepreneurs in rural areas all over the world. Once someone donates their used shoes, Soles4 Souls takes the shoes to one of their sorting centers across the United States. Then the shoes are transported to rural environments in countries like Haiti, South America, Africa, and Central America. Once they reach those areas, they are sold at a reasonable price to small business owners. Now the business owners have a product to sell at a marketplace or in their stores.
Although the drive has garnered 350 shoes, the advisories are hoping to get at least 500 pairs by the end of January.
For the past four years, former TBS math teacher Mr. Anthony DiGiovanni and his advisories have participated in this program. This year, Ms. McAllister, Mr. Bayless, Mr. Winters, and their advisories are sponsoring this fundraiser through the end of January as their community service project. The drive started in November, and, according to McAllister, the Middle School has collected “350 pairs of shoes, boots and sports shoes” thus far.
Since the hurricanes, especially Irma, many South Florida residents and families have been left homeless in shelters and without shoes. Although the hurricanes struck in September, many people are currently without water and other necessities, such as clothing and shoes. Like in Puerto Rico, many residents are still lacking clothes, food, and electricity. As a result, advisories are trying to help by providing them with shoes to wear.
“I had over 70 pairs of my mom’s shoes in August, but I donated them to Hurricane Harvey victims, so we began again slowly collecting before our announcement,” said Fine Arts Department Chair Ms. Nancy McAllister. “We began with about 50 pairs of shoes, and we hope to ultimately collect 500 pairs [or] single shoes by the end of January. We feel that this is a hugely important community service effort to help in a small way.”
Recently, the BBC reported that “at least 25% of homes in the Keys were destroyed and 65% suffered significant damage.” Simply giving up a pair of shoes can brighten someone’s day, since residents in the Keys lost many of their possessions in the hurricane. For students, it’s a small but important gesture.
“It made me feel better about myself because I can do something as little as take a pair of shoes from my closet to help someone,” said eighth grader Sydney Steinger.
“I donated my shoes from fifth grade,” added eighth grader Nicole Kleinfeld. “It was funny seeing how small they were and how much I’ve grown.”
Most people take shoes for granted. Some look forward to getting a new pair every school year, every season, or every special occasion. They are viewed as vehicles to express style and personality, and provide comfort for everyday activities.
However, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, Soles4Souls donates shoes to people all across the globe with the hope of providing them footwear that will allow them to stay free from infection and disease.
