Recently, the Montrose community donated shoes for small businesses in Africa to resell at low costs to those in need. Thanks to the leadership of Jenna McCarthy ‘19, who launched the meaningful shoe donation drive, she nearly doubled her 200 shoe goal by collecting 398 pairs. Jenna’s leadership, combined with the generosity of the community, made this event a great success.

Jenna appreciated the student enthusiasm which catapulted the event’s success. She said, “The whole process was very smooth once the program was approved. Shoes are still at my house and will be picked up by Rerun Shoes next week.”  This was a huge project and required collaboration and follow-through from the whole school community.

Jenna pointed to organization as the key to the successful drive. She said, “I set up collection boxes in the front lobby and wrote some articles about Rerun Shoes for the Looking Glass to help spread awareness about the organization and their program. In addition, I wrote a short blurb for the daily bulletin and hung some flyers around the school. Lastly, I made an announcement at Common Homeroom and sent out an all school e-mail. Also, I put flyers around my neighborhood, and my dad collected shoes at his work as well.”

Our gently used shoes will make a huge difference to those in Africa, while helping employ disabled adults in Massachusetts who work locally for the Re-Run organization. Jenna exclaimed, “I am so happy that the school assisted me in reaching the goal. The support from the faculty and students has been amazing and I am proud to be part of the Montrose community! All of the shoes donated will really help those in need.”

Now you may be asking, where do our shoes go? Jenna gave us the answer: “The shoes will first go to Holyoke, MA, will they will be sorted, cleaned and packaged by disabled adults to be shipped to Africa. Once in Africa, they will be sold at an affordable price by newly trained local entrepreneurs, who run their shoe business to support their families and communities. In addition, the shoes provide many Africans with dignified jobs. Please check out the video link that explains how your shoes will make a difference!”

By offering a little bit of love, we can change the lives of numerous underprivileged people. Thanks to Jenna’s leadership in this service opportunity, many people will have shoes to wear. Jenna wanted to tell us, “Thank you so much to everyone at Montrose who donated shoes and helped exceed the goal by double!”