NORTHBOROUGH – The Scholarship Committee will be holding an athletic shoe drive through Nov. 5.
The committee will be collecting running, basketball, gym, rubber cleats, hiking and casual sneakers. People can drop off their shoes at bins at PR Running at 18 Lyman Street in Westborough and Northborough locations at 180 Rice Avenue, 147 Davis Street, 43 Ridge Road and HOTWORX at 318 Main Street.
Scholarship Committee Chair Liz Nolan said the committee is always looking for unique fundraising ideas that don’t overlap with the efforts that already occur in Northborough.
“When the sneaker collection information was presented, we all agreed it was easy and would be environmentally-friendly while raising needed funds,” she said. “The motto of having the community reach into their closets, not their pockets to support this effort resonated with us. Who doesn’t have a few pairs of old sneakers sitting in their basement and closets?”
GotSneakers will then issue funds based on the number of gently worn, used and new sneakers collected.
The shoe recycling program will help keep sneakers out of landfills. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that between 200 to 300 million pairs of shoes are thrown into landfills every year.
The Scholarship Committee provides Northborough seniors financial assistance for their post-secondary education. In May, the committee awarded a total of $3,300 to seven graduates. Fundraising makes the scholarship awards possible.
For more information on how to make a direct donation either online or by mail, visit https://linktr.ee/northboroughscholarships.