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Gayle Gruenberg, Wayne Elsey
He put a callout to friends and business associates, hoping for a couple thousand pair. Soles2Souls collected 250,000 pair of donated shoes that it sent to tsunamai victims in Southeast Asia.
What came next was truly remarkable: Hurricane Katrina struck the south soon after, and Soles 4 Souls gathered and shipped 1.1 million pair to those in need.
This year, Soles4Souls expects to distribute 11 million more, through what Elsey has dubbed the “11/11″ campaign.
One of the more involved groups is Bergen County-based Let’s Get Organized, a “sounding board, shoulder to lean on and extra pair of hands” that help people in transition get things in order. The attentive, innovative company specializes in those who are upsizing, downsizing, relocating virtually anywhere, renovating, or going through any other major life event, including getting married, having a baby, or retirement.
“I’m 100% on board for this project,” Gayle Gruenberg, the innovative company’s Chief Executive Organizer, told CLIFFVIEW PILOT.
“What gets me is that children in other countries need shoes to go to school, they don’t have them, and therefore they can’t get an education,” said Gruenberg, a dynamic Park Ridge CPA and mother of two who is also the founding president of the North Jersey chapter of the National Association of Professional Organizers.
For dropoff centers in Bergen County and elsewhere in North Jersey, go to: GiveShoes.org. There are nearly 50 in an area that stretches from Demarest and Tenafly to Wayne and Kinnelon to Montclair and Irvington to Jersey City and Hoboken. If you leave anywhere in Bergen, you’re no more than 10-15 minutes away from one.
You could also email Gruenberg at Gayle@LGOrganized.com.
Why shoes?
For one thing, hookworm and other diseases kill countless people worldwide.
What’s more, Elsey said, “A pair of shoes can make someone look to a brighter day. You don’t have to worry about where you’re walking, stubbing your toe. You don’t have to worry about the elements, the heat, the cold, etc.
“All they have to worry about is moving forward.”
To this point, the non-profit has distributed 5.5 million pair in 127 countries, thanks to schools, organizations and individuals. But Elsey wants to do more.
The United States alone tosses away more than 300 million pairs of shoes a year — while more than 300 million children worldwide have none, he says, while describing the ambitious “11/11″ campaign.
It’s amazingly easy to help: Go to GiveShoes.org. It is one of the best organized and presented websites around, with clearly labeled sections, every direction and FAQ spelled out, videos by Elsey and others explaining the charity and even free live online help if you somehow have a question that isn’t answered on the site. The site gives you step-by-step instructions, along with hints, tips, suggestions and examples of success stories.
But first, watch this video, then check out the information below:
If you want, you can donate money: 97 cents of every dollar directly buys a pair of shoes for someone in need. 10 bucks = 10 pair.
If you’re a more active type, you could sponsor your very own shoe drive. Clean out your closets and invite friends to do the same. Gruenberg can help you.
As Elsey says, we can change the world, one shoe at a time.
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