MANSFIELD, Ohio–The Mend Mansfield Coalition doesn’t plan to merely give voice to the message to end violence; they’re putting their feet to the streets–and collecting shoes along the way.
The group launched a “2,000 Shoes in 2 Months” campaign to provide new shoes for local children returning to school. They’re looking for new, never worn shoes of all sizes, starting with children’s size 12/13 through adults.
Money to purchase shoes or gift cards are also welcome donations. The shoes will be distributed to students in grades K-12.
“We just want to be a blessing to our community and the children because our community is very good at giving book bags and supplies to children going back to school, but one area that we think needs to be filled is school shoes. So we are going to try to get 2,000 or more pairs of shoes donated to help get the children on the right foot for the new school year,” said Angel Ross-Taylor.
Shoes can be donated by calling 211 to learn where to drop them off. Drop-off sites include all of the Richland County libraries. The coalition has partnered with Milliron Industries, which is donating collection bins. The bins will be in place by the end of this week. The campaign will run until the “Each One, Reach One” rally on August 15.
Another partner for the project is the Richland Mall. The mall plans to promote the project on its Facebook page with their Back-to-School notifications. Beyond that, a contest is planned in which mall stores collect money and shoes, as well as donate a vacant storefront to be decorated as a reminder of the project. The storefront will be decorated by next week and signs will include information about where to drop off shoes.
“The idea is to actually display the shoes in the storefront so that people can see the progress as well collect the shoes, going from one pair of shoes to 2,000 pairs of shoes,” said General Manager Jodi Scott.
Scott made the first campaign launch on behalf of the Richland Mall on Wednesday morning. She also demonstrated that she’s a thrifty shopper. At The Shoe Dept. Scott purchased four pairs of children’s shoes with $50 in gift cards.
“We’re very excited about the project,” Scott said. “They called me and wanted to see how we could be a part of it and we’ve always seen ourselves as a community center. We love projects like this, so I was very excited they thought of us to be a part of it.”
The project is just under way at the mall and retailers will be given an opportunity to participate by collecting shoes, donating, or offering specials.
Businesses and organizations are invited to join the campaign or hold a shoe drive of their own.
“[The project] shows that we’re not only addressing the issues of violence, we’re also addressing other needs,” said WMFD News Anchor Brigitte Coles. Coles is still awed by the response to an email she sent after several shootings in March which led to the formation of the Mend Mansfield Coalition.
Ross-Taylor’s mother first worked at the General Motor’s plant and transferred to the plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana when the Mansfield plant closed. She shared the project with the plant managers in Fort Wayne through their Professional Managers Network and they accepted the challenge and will collect shoes for the project.
“One thing they want to emphasize is that when the plant went out [in Mansfield], they didn’t want people to think they forgot about them, the people in our area. They said they know that economically that really impacted us greatly…What her mom (Ross-Taylor’s) told us at the meeting was, ‘We want to show that we still care about Mansfield. We have not forgotten about you and we continue to support you and we will support this effort,’” Coles added.
The Mend Mansfield Coalition is also continuing development for the “Each One, Reach One” Rally on August 15 at 1 p.m. The rally will be the second rally held by the coalition to raise awareness to end violence in the city.
Check donations can be dropped off at Richland Bank for Mend Mansfield or sent to the Mend Mansfield Coalition at P.O. Box 1427, Mansfield, Ohio 44901.
For questions regarding donations to the shoe drive, contact Angel Ross-Taylor at 419-610-6915 or by email at angelnichole22@gmail.com
