Heart and Sole
The MSUCOM Shoe Project

Thank you to everyone who donated shoes to Heart and Sole in 2010. Because of you donations, in January of 2011, we were able to send more than1000 pairs of shoes to Haiti through Soaring Unlimited. We especially want to thank all the runners who donated their used running shoes (most looked brand new) and Runner’s World for advertising our project in their magazine.

Heart and Sole is a charitable project of the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine (MSUCOM). It provides new and gently used shoes to the poorest of the world’s people. Since the project began in 1999, more than 10,000 pairs of shoes have been shipped around the world.

In many poor nations – where people often live surrounded by environmental hazards – decent footwear is a luxury. Much of the population, especially the children, simply do not have shoes. This lack hinders them from finding work or even going to school. That’s why this program is exceedingly important.

Families receive donated shoes in Malawi, Central Africa.

Staff in the college have received donations of footwear from individuals, researchers in the college and other organizations. The shoes are boxed and sent out as funds allow.

In addition, other faculty, staff and students have taken boxes of shoes for distribution when they traveled to Third World countries or impoverished areas of the United States.

MSUCOM professors Roger Haut, Ph.D., and Ray Frederickson, M.S., donated nearly 100 pairs of shoes provided by the manufacturer after they were used in biomechanical research projects.

Ways That You Can Help

Donate shoes.
Heart and Sole is always looking for new or gently used shoes that can be shared with needy families.

Donate money.
Heart and Sole organizers have found that gathering shoes is quite easy, but obtaining the funds required to ship them abroad is difficult. One box of 10-15 pairs of shoes can cost as much as $40.00 to ship overseas and Heart and Sole currently has a supply of shoes waiting to be sent out for lack of funds. Please make checks payable to “MSUCOM” and mail to the address below. All donations to Heart and Sole are administered by the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine.

Identify shipping alternatives.
If you, or someone you know, live or works overseas, are planning an international mission trip, or can provide other low-cost methods of delivery, Heart and Sole can provide you with shoes that can be distributed to a region in need.

Residents receiving shoes at the Casa Materna, a pre-natal and post-natal care facility in Matagalpa, Nicaragua for mothers from rural areas who have high-risk pregnancies.

Ordinary people can make a difference. That’s the lesson of the MSUCOM Shoe Project, Heart and Sole, a charity drive that has given new and used shoes and boots to needy children and adults on three different continents. The project has collected shoes and boots from college faculty, students, and staff as well as from area high school students; shipped shoes to Malawi, Nicaragua, Haiti and Honduras; and donated boots to the Greater Lansing area.

Among the sites worldwide receiving shoes from MSUCOM's Heart and Sole project is a refugee camp near Cotonou, Benin, supported by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Pat Grauer, director of public relations, visited the camp May 11 to meet its leadership and to present boxes of shoes for the children. Pictured is a refugee child, Hermann, aged four, receiving a pair of shoes and sharing his joy with a friend.

Read more about the Heart and Sole project in these featured articles:

Thank you from Soles for Souls

Thank you from Coalition on Temporary Shelter

Thank you from Jim Arden Foundation

PeaceJam Returns with more Help

Heart and Sole featured in MSU Today

Swan Valley Highschool Helps Heart & Sole

Thank You from Soaring Unlimited

Girl Scout Troop #2294 Gets Involved

PeaceJam Jumps into Shoe Campaign

Thank You from a Missionary in Haiti

DeWitt Students Turn Cookies Into Shoes

The MSUCOM Shoe Project

Chris Lander: Sole Survivor

Heart and Sole delivers to Haiti