Avon Lake Schools Seeking Donations of Old Shoes

AVON LAKE, OH - The Avon Lake City Schools’ Walk on Wednesdays (WOW), a district-wide health and wellness initiative at the elementary and intermediate schools, is seeking donations of shoes for charity.

Each week, on Wednesdays, thousands walk outside as part of the program. On Oct. 26, the last walk of the season, WOW has a very important goal. The schools are collecting old shoes as a donation to help Planet Aid, a nonprofit organization that collects and recycles used textiles to protect the environment and support sustainable development in impoverished communities around the world.

Shoes and clothes are known as textiles. We throw away 14 million tons of textiles a year, including shoes. Bins from Planet Aid are currently set up at schools throughout Avon Lake (excluding the high school) to collect donations of all outgrown shoes, tennis shoes, crocks, boots, or even flip flops. By donating your old shoes, you can help keep them out of landfills. Some of the shoes go to two million children from other countries in Central America, Africa, and India. Seven out of 10 people worldwide wear second-hand clothing. Other shoes will be recycled and used in other ways. Planet Aid also uses their donations for education, agriculture, and healthcare in these countries.

Photo from Wikimedia Commons, Faguo