With over 5,000 shoes packed into one small Sydney house, you might think someone might have a bit of a problem.
Not for Viv Kartsounis. The shoes that line her front and back verandah, her garage and any storage area in her house are all for a good cause.
Viv and her husband Nick Drayton run the charity Shoes for Planet Earth, a not-for-profit organisation that collects shoes to donate to third world countries and the needy in Australia.
In just four years, the self-funded charity has sent over 14,500 shoes to those in need.
Avid runners, Viv was struck with the idea when she took part in a marathon in her native South Africa. Running from city to city, and passing countless impoverished towns, Viv would be joined by happy but shoeless children, running alongside the group to see what all the fuss was about.
That image stuck with her.
“The kids have no clothes, no shoes, no food, nothing,” Viv tell Neos Kosmos.
“So that was when we decided to formally start a charity.”
They were getting just a couple of shoes at a time in the beginning. With a circle of runner friends who had countless secondhand shoes, the charity started to gain momentum.
“We first approached a couple of shoe stores, so that they could collect shoes for us,”
“And then we went to gyms, podiatrists, individual schools around Sydney.”
Shoes for Planet Earth mostly deals with running shoes, to ensure longevity and comfort. For each shipment to Africa, different needs are catered to. Whether it be fitting a local youth soccer team or sizing a whole village, the needs always change.
But, it’s not just third world countries that need that sort of assistance. As much as people are willing to donate clothes and food to charities, shoes never get the same thought.
Shoes for Planet Earth collects thousands of shoes for the homeless and for disaster victims in the country.
“There is a huge need in Australia,” Viv says.
“Often for the men it’s very easy to get shoes to the different homeless centres, but for women it’s not so easy.”
Surprisingly, the easiest part of the charity is collecting the shoes. Many schools, businesses and gyms will willingly donate secondhand runners, but getting the shoes to those in need is harder.
As the charity is Sydney-based, shoes collected in other states are asked to find local homeless shelters and charities in need to drop off their shoes.
For Viv and Nick, just washing the shoes is a tough job. In a band-aid solution, they’ve bought a cement mixer, which they call “Mona” after marathon runner Steve Moneghetti.
The hardest part of all is sending shoes overseas.
“To send shoes overseas, it’s very expensive; it takes a long time,” Viv reveals.
Currently, the only way shoes can be sent overseas is from Viv and Nick funding the flight and transport costs themselves.
One saving grace for the company has been a solid donation from Jetstar Airways. The company has awarded the charity $15,000 cash and $15,000 worth of flights.
Shipments are ready to go, and a new New Zealand base is being set up.
Donations are the only way Shoes for Planet Earth can keep afloat.
The charity only accepts shoes in good condition, meaning no holes, and good soles.
To donate shoes or money, please visit shoesforplanetearth.com for more information.