QUITE A FEET. UWEC is accepting shoe donations for the annual Soles4Souls drive. (Submitted photo)

Having worn those running shoes down to the soles, donate them (or any shoes you no longer want) to the UW-Eau Claire McIntyre Library for them to go to a good cause. In connection to Earth Claire, the campus’ yearly Earth Day event, the Student Office of Sustainability and McIntyre Library is hosting its fourth annual Soles4Souls shoe drive. 

Beginning back in 2016, this campus shoe drive transfers its bundle of donated shoes from the community to Soles4Souls, a nonprofit that collects donated shoes and clothing. They then sell the used supplies to wholesalers and entrepreneurship programs in developing nations that sell the supplies at low cost to micro-businesses to support local economies; Soles4Souls also provides relief aid for natural disasters around the world and alleviates global pollution by preventing these donated shoes from going into landfills.

Starting on April 18, and going until May 20, you can stop by McIntyre Library on the UWEC campus to drop off any shoes you’d like to donate. The library’s open hours are 8am-11pm Monday-Thursday, 8am-6pm Friday, 11am-6pm Saturday, and 11am-11pm Sunday. Protect the planet and help communities in developing nations with the power of your shoes.

To learn more about Soles4Souls, visit soles4souls.org.