Thank you!
/Thank you Jamie K. for the contribution, we appreciate your help!
Thank you Jamie K. for the contribution, we appreciate your help!
Thank you to Doug K. for the cash donation! After Doug read about our trip to Haiti, he made a donation right through our website.
Day 1: The flight was fine and we met up with our group. Our coordinator was delayed at customs with additional sneakers for our distribution. Our van didn't make it to the hotel, as the full rim/tire started coming off - another slight delay until we could get picked up by another van. Our new driver, a little on the aggressive side, caused a road rage incident that didn't go over too well with the locals, especially since his van was full with Americans. We got boxed in and things got a little tense, but we made our way through. We arrived at the hotel, checked in with guards armed with machine guns. We're in for the night, exhausted, but spirits are high, the group we're with seems great and everyone is ready to get started tomorrow with the first distribution.
Day 2: Today was pretty incredible. We started early and jumped on a boat to an island that was about 15 miles away. The level of poverty is astonishing. We gave out about 200 pairs of sneakers to kids of all ages, mostly very young. The distribution was visible through perimeter fences and it attracted some older kids, unhappy that they were not participating, they started throwing glass bottles. We were about done anyway, so we wrapped up. It was a long day, but definitely successful. We're back at it tomorrow for 2 distributions in 2 new locations.
Day 3: We distributed about 100 pairs of shoes today at school, we were supposed to do 2 stops, but the van broke down, we were delayed and didn't have time for the next stop. The drive to the school took about 3 hours each way, driving through these streets is surreal, up close to the poverty, overcrowding, malnourished animals and seeing just how hard people are working. We have one more distribution tomorrow.
Day 4, part 1: We hiked up to a remote village on the top of a mountain. We distributed about another 100 pairs of shoes to people with no water, no school - they have very little of anything. They told us that's their destiny - so they make it work. It's a 3 hour walk to the closest running stream, they rely on rain.
Part 2: We ended the day at a feeding center, we helped hand out meals and then played with the kids. They were happy to whoop us in the slaps game, each of us walked away with the top of our hands bright red.
So there you have it – Haiti 2016 – with our partners at Soles4Souls, we can’t wait to do it again!
We will be traveling to Haiti tomorrow to distribute footwear! We should cover much of the island, with 4 separate distributions planned around the local communities, either at orphanages or schools. We won’t necessarily be handing out sneakers that we’ve collected ourselves, but we’re stepping out of our comfort zone and volunteering to see firsthand the final destination of sneakers collected by our partners at Sole4Souls and the positive impact it has on underprivileged families. Many of you have helped Sole Relief become a success and we just can’t thank you enough. Stay tuned for updates!
Our total for April is 202! As we prepare for Haiti, we wrapping up the collections a little early. Thank you to all that contributed! We have now collected over 2,300 pairs of shoes for those in need.
Thank you to Jimmy N. for the cash donation! His contribution, which we are sending to Soles4Souls, will provide 100 pairs of shoes for those in need. After talking to Jimmy about what we're doing with Sole Relief - he reached right into his wallet and wanted to help. Thank you Sir!
Thank you to the Backus, Fassberg, Minor, Sheiner and Schleifer families- we appreciate all of your help and contributions.
Our total for May is 427! We have now collected over 2,100 pairs of shoes for those in need. Thank you to all that contributed.
Sole Relief has partnered with MVP3on3 - the 3 on 3 basketball tournament coming to Coral Springs Charter School on June 4th. This is a fantastic basketball tournament experience and we're proud to be a part of it!
MVP3on3 is a single day tournament for grades 4th-6th. For more information, you can check out: www.mvp3on3.com. Please bring sneakers in any condition and look for the Sole Relief drop spots.
Our total for April is 571! Another big month, thanks in large part to the sneaker drive hosted by Jay Milmed, Ass't Principal, Flanagan High School. Thank you to all that contributed.
Our total for March is 618! We have now collected over 1,000 pairs of shoes for those in need. Thank you to all that contributed.
Despite not-so-great weather we had a successful sneaker drive in partnership with the Florida Panthers. We collected over 100 pairs of sneakers that were donated to In Jacob's Shoes. It was a great opportunity to spread the word about Sole Relief - thanks again to the Panthers!
Thank you Coach Colby and Jessica for your donations, we appreciate your help and support!
February was a huge month of donations, we collected 368 pairs of shoes that will be shipped to Soles4Souls. We were greatly helped by the ihelpmoms.com shoe drive and the drop bin located at Everything Hair in Boca Raton. Thank you to everyone that contributed, we're looking forward to a successful March!
We stopped by Everything Hair over the weekend to thank Peyton and her staff for all their help. Everything Hair in Boca Raton will be an official drop-off location for Sole Relief contributions.
Our friends at ihelpmoms.com collected over 100 pairs of shoes during their event on February 17th. A huge thank you to Michelle - we look forward to working with you again.
We had a big weekend for collections! Thank you to:
The Minor family
The Lubetkin family
Drew P.
EVL Sports aka EVLution Nutrition is an amazing company lead by former BMX pro Mike Spinner. We just can't thank him enough, be sure to check them out for all your nutritional supplement needs. www.evlnutrition.com
A huge thank you goes out to ihelpmoms.com for helping our cause! As part of their effort, they are collecting kids shoes for Sole Relief - please bring all donations to Scarfones Pizza in Coral Springs on Wednesday, February 17 from 11:30 am to 1:30!
Thank you to the Marshall family - we appreciate all your support!
© Sole Relief, Inc. 2021