A Canmore business is turning old shoes into new beginnings for those in need through the holiday season.
For the past six months, Ultimate Fit Centre collected gently-worn running shoes from customers and donated them to several worthy causes in the area and around the globe as part of its Shoebox program.
Packages of shoes have gone to Exshaw Public School and Morley Community School, while travellers have also taken backpacks full of second-hand shoes as far away as Mt. Kilimanjaro. Thus far, the program has donated more than 120 pairs of shoes and shows no sign of slowing down.
“People asked a lot if they could drop off their old shoes,” said Ultimate Fit Centre Events co-ordinator Cindy Chiperzak. “We thought locally it would be great if someone could drop off shoes and get them to someone who needs them.”
Original plans were to send them overseas with travelers and thus far two globe trotters have taken the store up on its offer, hauling shoes to porters on Mount Kilimanjaro.
“On Kilimanjaro, porters walk up and down the mountain barefoot most of the time. If we can give them something, even a worn-out pair of shoes, it would be better than that,” Chiperzak said.
But local schools also expressed a need, and the bulk of donations have ended up in Exshaw and Morley. School staff from both schools have worked to ensure shoes are made available to their students in need.
“We’ve given out four or five bags of all sizes,” Chiperzak said. “Some people bring six or seven pairs of shoes in at a time.”
The program takes all sorts of shoes, regardless of condition, and sort out the good from the bad later.
We’ll take any running shoe, as long as it’s still useable. They have to have laces and insoles. They have to be useable. Runners will wear a pair of shoes out for running, but they’re probably fine to walk in them,” Chiperzak said.
Runners are reluctant to part with shoes, but if they know they’re going to someone in need, they’re more apt to donate, Chiperzak said.
“The biggest thing is finding ways to get shoes to people.”
When the shoes go to Africa, the store likes to track them and find out if they made it to the porters.
Anyone interested in donating shoes or taking shoes to others visit the Ultimate Fit Centre or email [email protected]
