Local girls keep Brownie promise with shoe project

MAPLEWOOD, NJ — One Maplewood Girl Scouts Brownie troop is gearing up for the finish line, but to reach their goal, instead of wearing sneakers they will be collecting them to send to the nonprofit MORE Foundation Group, which will either donate them to those in need in Ghana or sell the shoes to raise funds allowing them to teach an adopted family in Ghana how to farm and to provide the family with the necessary tools. Brownie Troop 20874 is a group of 12 third-graders at Jefferson Elementary School in Maplewood that has set a collection goal of at least 600 pairs of athletic shoes, which in turn pays for hands-on training and the necessary supplies.

The MORE Foundation Group, which stands for Modular Organic Regenerative Environments, is the largest nonprofit recycler of used running and fitness shoes in the United States. MORE partners with more than 1,200 running stores, gyms, fitness centers, YMCAs, churches, schools and private businesses across the country.

“In each village that we sponsor, our staff erects a tree nursery, digs a new water well and installs an irrigation water pump capable of watering 25,000 trees. We supply 30,000 starter grow bags for trees that will eventually provide fruits, nuts, honey, marketable hardwoods and firewood,” Steve Penkert, director of corporate sponsorship, said in an email. “We also provide each village a full-time nursery manager for eight months to ensure that at least 25,000 saplings reach maturity. The families themselves receive five months training to learn composting, germination, propagation and sustainable agro-forestry techniques.

“Finally, at the beginning of the rainy season, our staff assists in the planting of 1,000 trees on 25 different tree farms throughout the village,” Penkert continued. “When we are done, there is a permanent tree nursery in the village and 25,000 trees have been planted on 25 tree farms. In year two, the goal is for each farming family to plant another 1,000 trees. In 2015 alone, we worked with 10 new villages.”

So how did 12 little girls become the sponsors of a family on another continent?

“One of our missions is community service and to learn how to be good citizens,” Troop 20874 co-leader Terri Fowlkes said in a recent phone interview with the News-Record. “For Family Fitness Day at Jefferson back in October we tried to think of a project that the girls could start at the event and continue to do afterward and have fun with it.”

After deciding to do a sneaker drive, a few calls around the area led the group to the Sneaker Shop in Millburn, which told them about the work that the MORE Foundation Group was doing with used athletic shoes.

“We learned that the shoes in good shape are sent directly to Ghana and the ones in bad shape are melted down and used to build roads and other critical infrastructure items,” Fowlkes said. “Also, we learned that for every 600 pairs of shoes that are donated, we are able to sustain a family for an entire year.”

So from October through December, the group set out collection boxes throughout the local area. Collection sites included Jefferson and Marshall elementary schools; South Mountain YMCA sites throughout South Orange and Maplewood; American Jiu Jitsu in Maplewood; St. Andrews and Holy Communion Episcopal Church in South Orange; and Motions Fitness Club in Millburn.

The response has been overwhelming. The group has collected almost 500 pairs of shoes so far and is working to collect approximately 100 more to reach the goal.

“The MORE Foundation Group called and they were so excited about what we are doing that they gave the group a highlight in their newsletter,” Fowlkes said. “The girls are really excited because it started as a little project and it’s really growing and it’s a big deal because no group normally donates that many shoes at one time.”

Although the boxes in public places were removed at the end of December, the group is still diligently collecting shoes, and has received donations from co-workers of parents, and through the generosity of neighbors and friends.

“Everyone has shoes, if you have kids they outgrow them and beat them up. People were literally giving shoes off their feet to us, and we are going to keep accepting them until we reach 600 pairs,” Fowlkes said.

To donate shoes, contact the troop at girlscouttroop20874@gmail.com.