soles for souls

Here is yet another wonderful organization that is making a huge difference in the world--one pair of shoes at a time. It's called Soles4Souls and here is their story:

 "In the aftermath of the 2004 tsunami that hit Southeast Asia, Wayne Elsey, the Founder of Soles4Souls® Inc., felt compelled to do something. Like many of us, he did not know what to do. He was at home one night, watching TV and he saw a picture of a single shoe washing up on the beach. That triggered a few calls to some other executives in the footwear industry and the subsequent donation of a quarter of a million shoes to victims in the devastated countries.

A few months later when Katrina hit, Wayne called the same group of friends, and through our continued support, we have sent over a million pairs of shoes down to the gulf coast communities affected by the hurricane. In all honesty, he admits that he did not expect such an immediate and successful turnout. This left him wondering, why not start a non-profit and do this all the time? One year later, Soles4Souls was formally created.

It has been that simple: changing the world one pair at a time.

Soles4Souls receives large donations from footwear companies, retailers, churches, nonprofit ministries, civic groups, schools, and individuals and saw that this could become a full time organization. That's why Soles4Souls was created – to facilitate the donations from these groups to the people who desperately need footwear."

--www.soles4souls.org

This is an AMAZING story of how terrible things happen and we are left wondering, how can we help? There is so much to do, so much to fix...where would we start. You start here. 

There are so many ways you can help Soles4Souls, so lets start with the simplest. You can donate $7 here. $7 = 7 pairs of shoes for children who are currently walking around barefoot exposing themselves to the possibility of contracting a potentially life threatening disease caused by parasites. GIVE SHOES. GIVE LOVE.

You can also clean out your closet and send your old shoes in to Soles4Souls, or find a drop off location near you! Your shoes that may not be getting use from you may mean the world to a child. 

Last but not least you can go barefoot for one day (10.11.12). All you have to do is click here to sign up, and you will be sent the story of a child in a developing nation affected by the need for shoes. Carry your story with you, and when asked "Ummm....where are your shoes?!" tell the story! And then tell me about it (bethechangemakethedifference@gmail.com) so I can feature you on the blog.

Be the change. Make the difference.