Thursday, November 12, 2009

Learn More About Soles4Souls®, Inc.

Soles4Souls®, Inc. began as a small team effort to make a difference in people’s lives with the gift of shoes. When Hurricane Katrina roared ashore the gulf coast of the United States in late August 2005, a group of caring individuals and motivated charities created a website called KatrinaShoes.org in order to collect footwear donations from companies and individuals.

The response to its call for action was overwhelming. As the fledgling charity called upon other organizations to help distribute the amount of donated footwear that arrived, it discovered that the need for basic footwear was immense, even when natural disasters weren’t looming on the horizon.

KatrinaShoes.org reincorporated as Soles4Souls, Inc., which has become an acclaimed international organization dedicated to providing free footwear to those in desperate need.

Soles4Souls offers a variety of services and support materials to achieve its mission, which include:

• The collection and distribution of new footwear, either from manufacturers or retailers;

• The collection and distribution of “gently worn” footwear, either from individuals or companies initiating a shoe “trade-in” event;

• Domestic and international distribution of footwear received as donations;

• Collaboration with civic groups, churches, schools, companies, and individuals to plan and implement shoe drives, generally in a city or localized region;

• Hosting/sponsoring special events (such as retail trade-in incentives, marathons and other races, golf tournaments, parties at trade shows, etc.);

• The creation of marketing materials in support of special events;

• Special project collaboration and unique marketing avenues with other charities, celebrities, professional athletes, and more.

By partnering with footwear companies, Soles4Souls is uniquely positioned to collect and distribute customer returns, excess inventory, and cash to support its mission.  And by partnering with caring individuals, companies, and charities
around the country, Soles4Souls has the ability to hold popular footwear drives to reach needy people in the United States and around the world.

Since the formal incorporation of Soles4Souls as a 501(c)(3) charity, the organization has served people by delivering millions of pairs of shoes to the following countries: The United States, Mexico, Venezuela, Ecuador, Guatemala,
Honduras, The Dominican Republic, Haiti, Brazil, Uganda, Sudan, and Romania.

More countries are continually added to this list as Soles4Souls finds regional partners able to distribute the footwear to needy people within their region.

Soles4Souls is collecting and distributing more than 45,000- 60,000 pairs of shoes each week, over 5.5 million pairs to date. That’s one pair every 9 seconds to someone in need.

We are continually looking for new partners with our mission. Your organization can get involved today in making a difference in people’s lives with the gift of shoes. Contact us today to see how we can work together to offer a simple and effective gift to people around the world.

Soles4Souls, Inc. – Changing the World One Pair at a Time.

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