It is time for Mount St. Mary’s University’s ROTC shoe drive. A shoe drive is a fundraiser event where people bring in shoes, and those shoes get donated to people who can buy them at a much cheaper price. The student in charge of running the shoe drive is Ucheyah Aguoru.
Aguoru, a member of the ROTC and Class of ‘23, said that this is a great way for Mount St. Mary’s University’s students, staff and alumni to give back to the community in which it is located. It is not every day that giving back is made easy, but the university has made this drive very simple.
First, if you want to donate, grab a pair of lightly used sneaks or buy new ones. After that, bring them to one of the many drop offs located all over the Emmitsburg main campus. There are three drop-off locations. One at the varsity and student gym, another at the academic center and the last one located in Lower McGowan in Campus Ministry. The third step is letting ROTC do the rest.
The rest is collecting the shoes and giving them to an organization known as GotSneakers. GotSneakers’ purpose is to collect these gently used, or new shoes, and give them to secondhand markets. These markets will include the likes of Goodwill, and others like them. Those secondhand markets are then able to sell the shoes from different shoe drives at much reduced prices. This allows for people who may not be able to get new sneakers at full price, to be able to get themselves and/or loved ones' shoes.
What can the faculty, staff, students and alumni do to help the ROTC and their GotSneakers Shoe Drive? That part, Aguoru said, is pretty simple. Make sure to give a pair of shoes that they do not wear. Nothing more than that is necessary.
Why does ROTC want to do this? Aside from being part of the Mount and greater
Emmitsburg community, is to allow the MSMU family give back. Aguoru state, “We felt like this is a way for everyone to give back and feel like they made a difference.” The shoe drive started on Oct. 25 and went through Dec. 2 of last semester. If there are any questions, or a need for more information, reach out to Ucheyah Aguoru at u.c.aguoru@email.msmary.edu.