EPCHS Collects Old Sneakers For Christmas Without Cancer

EVERGREEN PARK, IL – Evergreen Park Community High School’s Service Club is partnering with the local non-profit organization Christmas Without Cancer on a sneaker drive that runs through early April.

The high school will serve as a drop-off location for the drive from through Tuesday, April 5. New or gently-worn sneakers of any brand (child sizes 4 and up and any adult sizes) will be collected from the public at the EPCHS main entrance during school hours at 9901 S. Kedzie Ave. Donations from the public and school community will also be accepted during the baseball, softball and track home events on April 5.

The shoes will be donated to GotSneakers, a sneaker recycling program that raises money for each pair of used shoes, with the goal of keeping sneakers and gym shoes out of landfills and reusing the sneakers for people in need.

At least 200 million pairs of shoes and sneakers end up in landfills across the United States 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.

Every pair donated as part of the drive will raise money for Christmas Without Cancer, a non-profit that helps local families battling the devastation of cancer. CWC identified needs and then provides gifts and everyday necessities to Chicago-area families with members stricken with cancer so to allow the beauty of Christmas to shine through while family members find comfort in their devotion to one another, according to the organization’s website.

Residents throughout Evergreen Park and surrounding towns and neighborhoods are encouraged to go through closets and gather as many pairs of sneakers that are no longer wanted. Family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and anyone in your social networks should be asked to help out because every pair counts.

Any questions on EPCHS’ involvement can be directed to Anna Papasideris, EPCHS Service Club faculty sponsor, at apapasideris@evergreenpark.org.