Welcome!
A Letter From the Founder
Welcome to the official website of Share Our Soles! I am still in awe that
my small Holiday project to donate 100 pairs of shoes has snowballed into
a non-profit organization active on both the East and West coasts, helping underprivileged children from inner-city Los Angeles to Mexico to the Dominican Republic to Sudan, Uganda, Liberia, and Kenya in Africa.
A brief history of how the Ventura, California snowflake became an international snowball:
I have been a competitive track and cross country runner since elementary school, even competing in numerous youth national championships; but, five years ago as a freshman in high school, I suffered a stress fracture in
my hip and couldn’t run for several months. Then I missed most of my sophomore year because of knee injuries.
While at the time I could not have been more devastated by my injuries, today I consider them true blessings. For being unable to run made me realize how much I truly love the sport of running and all that it has given me -- such as self-esteem, confidence, and friendships. In other words,
while running is hard,
not running is harder.
While I knew I would eventually get healthy and be able to run and race again, I also knew simply running and racing again, simply returning to where I left off, was not enough. I had to make something of my rekindled passion for running and the lessons I had learned.
My family -- especially my older sister, Dallas -- has always taught me that the best, most effective way to overcome personal adversity is to help others. For helping others with their problems brings us joy and helps to put our own problems in proper perspective. In this light, while I was injured and unable to run, I started thinking about underprivileged kids who couldn’t enjoy this great sport -- not because of injury, but simply because they couldn’t afford running shoes.
Instead of feeling sorry for myself, I have tried to turn the negative into a positive by creating “Share Our Soles” (S.O.S.), a non-profit organization that donates used (but still in good condition) running shoes to underprivileged youth.
My initial goal was to collect and clean by hand 100 pairs of running shoes by Christmas 2006. By getting the word out and by placing collection boxes at local schools, gyms and running stores, however, I was able to personally collect, wash, and send (with the shipping help of Sports Gift, Inc. in San Diego) more than 500 pairs of cleaned-up running shoes both near and far to inner-city Los Angeles as well as Sudan, Uganda and Kenya in Africa.
The feedback from youths in Africa has been especially moving for me --
not only were these the first
running shoes any of them had owned, they were the first
shoes many of them had ever had. Along with S.O.S.'s unexpected impact halfway around the world, the great joy I felt upon helping others -- as well as the great joy others felt upon donating their shoes and time -- inspired me to turn my Holiday project into a year-round endeavor. Since the winter of 2006, Share Our Soles has continued to grow,
inspiring and bringing joy to givers and receivers alike.
Indeed, my sister's lesson has proven true in my experience: helping others overcome their problems has brought me joy and perspective. Joy in hearing from orphanages in Africa that the lives of many kids have been turned from violence and drugs towards school and family simply by reminding them, through a pair of shoes, that they are loved. Perspective in smiling when I look back on my injuries, and seeing how my hip and my knees led to the snowflake and the snowball. And, as far
as S.O.S. has come so far -- as much as it has snowballed already -- I
am even more excited for its future.
That is, in part, where this website comes in: another step forward from the single snowflake to the larger snowscape. One snowflake, one shoe at a time, we are working to help those in need and foster joy in the hearts of all. I look forward to your help.
Best always,
Greg
Friends
Mallory (left) and Allison (right) sort and bag shoes after the successful shoe collection drive held by Shir Ha Ma'alot in Irvine, CA
inspired the community to generously donate hundreds of shoes.
Youth in Uganda play in newly donated shoes.