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With the increase in child poverty levels here in the UK, Sal's Shoes have seen a marked increase in demand for children’s footwear on our doorstep. As a relatively small charity, they have been blessed with free premises in the past to host the incoming donations of shoes that are received. Recently however, the charity have had to move their premises and are now on a mission to fundraise the additional £30,000 per year that is now needed to cover the rent. Every £1 donated really will make a difference. Readers can donate online via the Sal's Shoes website at www.salsshoes.com or via cheque made out to Sal’s Shoes and posted to: Sal’s Shoes, Easistore, Enterprise Way, Edenbridge, Kent TN8 6HF
All about Sal's Shoes
When CJ Bowry’s little boy, Sal, outgrew his first pair of shoes, she was determined to send them to a child who desperately needed them.
But while lots of charities could send the shoes off for CJ, they weren’t able to tell her exactly where the shoes would end up and when they’d arrived there safe.
Still unsure about what to do, it was shortly after scrolling through Facebook one day that CJ was inspired.
“I saw some photos a friend had shared from where she was volunteering at a children’s hospital ward in Zambia and from the photos, it was clear to see the children were all barefoot,” says CJ.
With Sal’s outgrown shoes piling up, CJ contacted her friend to see if they would be any use. The answer was a resounding yes, so she packed up Sal’s old shoes to send to her friend to distribute among the children in Zambia.
Then, a few weeks later, a surprise photo arrived in the post. “The photo was of a little boy wearing his first ever pair of tiny brown Velcro shoes and they were Sal’s ones! It was such a lovely picture to be given and seeing the photo inspired me to do more,” says CJ, who lives in Surrey.
After sending off another collection of Sal’s shoes, along with some of her friend’s children’s footwear, more photos were sent to CJ of them being worn by children in Zambia. Twenty-four hours after sharing the photos on her own Facebook page, CJ was staggered by the response. “The next day I had 150 emails in my inbox from complete strangers enquiring what organisation I’d done this through and asking if they could send off their own children’s shoes.”
Two days later, Sal’s Shoes was up and running as a small registered charity, helping people send unwanted children’s shoes to those who desperately needed them.
That was five years ago and today CJ’s inspiring work is changing so many young lives, helping tackle poverty where an estimated 300 million vulnerable children in the world have never owned a pair of shoes. “The more work I’ve done with Sal’s Shoes, the more I’ve learnt about the importance of footwear,” says Sal. “Feet in shoes are protected from injury, and in areas of low sanitation, shoes stop the spread of infection.
“In many countries where the education system is free, school uniform tends to be mandatory, so if you can’t afford a pair of school shoes, then you can’t go to school.”
Sal’s Shoes, however, makes huge strides in rectifying that problem as a team of incredible volunteers collect, organise and distribute the masses of donated shoes they receive throughout the year, finding new feet for any child-appropriate shoes they receive. In fact, in five years they’ve donated more than a million pairs of pre-loved children’s shoes in 38 countries around the globe, with the millionth pair hand-delivered by CJ and her son, Sal, to three-year-old Tumelo in South Africa.
While every delivery makes a huge difference to families, perhaps the most moving donation CJ ever remembers was to children in the Ukraine. “To think that these poor children were in bare feet or sandals in -15ºC was so heartbreaking, especially when I’ve got two young children myself.”
However, Sal’s Shoes was able to donate thousands of pairs of warm winter shoes to these children, bringing them comfort and care when they needed it most.
And it’s not just overseas where Sal’s Shoes is changing lives. “With UK poverty levels rising Sal’s Shoes have always been keen to distribute in the UK as well. I’m well aware there are kids 10 minutes from where I live who go to school hungry so it’s important to help them too,” says CJ.
In the UK, Sal’s Shoes sends larger-sized practical footwear and trainers to the homeless, domestic violence victims, asylum seekers and amputees, as well as giving to a range of charities that help vulnerable mums.
“Obviously, last winter was hard in Britain with The Beast from the East and, luckily, we had a lot of larger-sized shoes in our warehouse, so we sent them to a homeless shelter.”
Looking to the future, CJ now just hopes to be able to continue passing on unwanted shoes to those who are so in need across the globe. “Because we’re still quite a small charity, we’re solely dependent on funding to keep going. At the moment we have plenty of shoes but we desperately need funds to make sure we get them sent out to the children who so need them.”
If you’d like to find out more about the charity’s work write to Sal’s Shoes, Glebelands, Pilgrims Lane, Titsey Oxted RH8 0SE, or visit www.salsshoes.com. You can also send a cheque payable to Sal’s Shoes to the above address.