St. Louis County Library helps bring “sole” to Shoeman Water Projects

Jan. 17, 2013 - PRLog -- St. Louis County Library helps bring “sole” to Shoeman Water Projects

All 20 St. Louis County branches collecting used shoes!

ST. LOUIS, MO (January 17, 2013) – The St. Louis County Library and Shoeman Water Projects (SWP), a local non-profit that helps communities around the world by providing clean water to developing countries, announces a new partnership.  From January 21 – February 28, all 20 St. Louis County Library branches will be accepting shoes.  Any type of shoe will be accepted, provided they do not have holes in them.

When you visit one of the 20 library branches, bring a pair or more of gently used shoes.  Shoes should be tied, rubber-banded, or bagged together.  The shoes collected and funds from exporting the shoes to places like Kenya, Haiti and South America for resale will help buy well-drilling rigs and water purification systems.

Throughout literature, we find the transformative power of shoes! Famous shoes in literature include Cinderella’s glass slipper, Dorothy’s ruby slippers from The Wizard of Oz, and the feline’s footwear in Puss in Boots. Shoeman Water Projects gives library patrons the opportunity to make their shoes just as powerful by transforming them into the life-saving gift of water for people who thirst.

All 20 St. Louis County Library Branches from January 21 – February 28, 2013.

· Bridgeton Trails in Bridgeton

· Meramec Valley in Fenton

· Cliff Cave on Telegraph Road

· Mid County on Maryland Ave.

· Daniel Boone in Ellisville

· Natural Bridge on Natural Bridge Rd.

· Eureka Hills in Eureka

· Oak Bend on S. Holmes Ave.

· Florissant Valley in Florissant

· Prairie Commons in Hazelwood

· Grand Glaize in Manchester

· Rock Road in St. Ann

· Headquarters on Lindbergh

· Samuel C. Sachs in Chesterfield

· Indian Trails on Delport Dr.

· Tesson Ferry on Lin Ferry Dr.

· Jamestown Bluff in Florissant

· Thornhill on Willowyck Dr.

· Lewis & Clark on Lewis-Clark Blvd.

· Weber on Weber Rd.

"SLCL is excited to partner with Shoeman Water Project on this important endeavor. Library customers and staff are always eager to give back to the community.  We expect this to be a very successful collaboration," said Jennifer McBride, Communications Manager.

780 million people lack access to clean water.  That is equal to 2 ½ times the United States population according to water.org.  According to Shoeman Water Projects 100,000 pairs of shoes = 1 drill = 2,000 people receiving fresh, clean water.  

Shoeman Water Projects has collected over 3 million shoes since 2008.  This equates to four well-drilling rigs, more than 250 wells drilled serving more than 200,000 people, as well as the installation of water purification systems and repairs to well pumps that serve clinics, schools and villages across the globe.

“We couldn’t be prouder to partner with St. Louis County Libraries for this shoe drive.  It is only with the support of such strong community partners that we are able to do our work of providing water to communities.  The shoes collected at the libraries will create clean water sources for communities, and allow children to go to school rather than spend each day walking miles on a water walk,” says George “the Shoeman” Hutchings, who has seen the positive impact of clean water firsthand.

Visit Shoeman Water Projects to learn more about the organization at www.shoemanwater.org.

About Shoeman Water Projects

One pair of donated shoes serves two! One pair of shoes provides affordable shoes and clean, fresh water. Shoeman Water Projects is a project of Eagle Wings Ministries, a registered 501(c)(3) non-profit charity, working to alleviate as much human suffering as possible. Shoeman Water Projects picks up donated used and new shoes from businesses, churches, schools, special events and shoe drives. Once collected, the Shoeman exports the shoes to street vendors in South America, Haiti, Kenya and other places where people need affordable shoes. Shoe resale builds the local developing economy with retail businesses and affordable shoes.  The money the Shoeman receives from exporting the shoes is used to purchase well drilling rigs, water purification systems, and other supplies to bring clean, fresh water to those who thirst.  Additionally, groups and organizations planning mission trips have the opportunity to purchase a water purification system and receive training on water purification, health and hygiene that they can pass along to the people they serve.

About St. Louis County Library
St. Louis County Library is the busiest library in Missouri, circulating over 14 million items at 20 locations. SLCL offers free programs and activities for all age groups including computer classes, job help, ESL support, movie nights, book clubs, craft groups and more. For more information or to find the latest happenings, please visit www.slcl.org.