Some William Peace University students used scissors and pencils on Martin Luther King day to benefit Sole Hope, an organization that helps children and their families in Uganda by making shoe patterns from recycled blue jeans.
The project was one of several students worked on at WPU’s annual Day of Service. Other students were separated into groups that packed meals or sewed blankets for the homeless at the event hosted by Peace and the Community Together.
For the Sole Hope project, students were set up in five stations to complete the task. In station one, participants cut blue jeans into strips. Next, in station two, patterns were traced onto the jeans.
In station three, the patterns were cut out onto the jeans and in station four these pieces were organized into sets. Each of these sets of blue jean pieces will be sent to Uganda for women there to make into shoes for children in the country.
In station five, the pieces are simply pinned together to be sent to Uganda. The shoes are crucial to children in Uganda because when barefoot microscopic parasites, called jiggers, burrow into their feet. The parasites must be removed for the children to heal, but once removed they can wear these denim shoes to help protect their feet.[sidebar title=”Want to know more?” align=”left” background=”on” border=”all” shadow=”on”]
For more information about Sole Hope, visit www.solehope.org
Read more coverage of the annual WPU Day of Service Day here.
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“Sole Hope is all about making a difference. The fact that we all come together, gave time out our day to make someone’s life a little easier is fulfilling and heartwarming,” said Terrace Myles, a WPU senior who helped in station three. “The children of Uganda, who are affected by jiggers don’t have the pleasure of wearing comfortable shoes every single day, like we do here in the States.”
Sole Hope also helps the women in Uganda who are paid to sew the pieces of denim together to make the shoes.
“I really enjoyed this project because by doing something as simple as cutting jeans, I can change the lives of kids in a needy place,” said WPU Junior Holly Kauls.