Christmas Without Cancer Holds Drive-Thru Sneaker Recycling Drive

CHICAGO – In honor of Earth Day, Christmas Without Cancer will host a drive-thru recycling event where spring cleaners can drop off gently worn, used or new sneakers, as part of the organization’s “GotSneakers” fundraising campaign. Donations, including gift cards and cash, can be dropped off on Saturday, April 23 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Evergreen Park Community Center, located at 3450 West 97th Place.

Sneakers in child sizes 4 and above, as well as any adult size, or brand will be accepted. Every pair will be donated to GotSneakers, to raise funds for Christmas Without Cancer. To date, more than 1,000 pairs of sneakers have been collected for the drive.

For those who do not have sneakers to donate, cash and gift card donations will be accepted. All donations will help to provide year-round sustenance to families throughout the Chicago area who are battling cancer. All donors will receive a Christmas Without Cancer bracelet or keychain, while supplies last.

GotSneakers is a sneaker recycling program which provides money for each pair of used shoes, with the goal of keeping sneakers and gym shoes out of landfills and/or reusing quality pre-loved sneakers for those in need. All reusable sneakers from the company’s sneaker drive fundraiser program are recirculated to the secondhand market, so people can access quality, pre-owned footwear at affordable prices. All heavily used and damaged footwear is recycled to reuse materials or to convert waste into new energy.

In the United States, at least 200 million pairs of shoes and sneakers end up in landfills each year. Since sneakers are manufactured with materials that are not biodegradable and produce large amounts of CO2, they remain in landfills or are incinerated, which leads to toxic chemicals in our air and soil. Shoes in landfills can take 30 to 40 years to decompose.

Sneaker drop-boxes are also located throughout the city and suburbs. A full list can be found at Christmas Without Cancer.

Since 2003, Christmas Without Cancer has aided thousands of people across the Chicagoland area by providing holiday gifts, as well as everyday necessities, to local families that are stricken with cancer. Founded in 2003 by an oncology nurse, the organization quietly identifies and adopts multiple families throughout the year and supplies them with gift cards for groceries, medications, gas, and other “need” items, as well as help with mortgage payments, rent, tuition and travel related expenses for treatment.