Our guest speaker was the recreational therapist from the mental health and homeless facility that is just across the street from where we live. One of many topics that she spoke about was their great need for socks during the winter months. Everyone who comes in will get a pair of clean used or new socks. Why socks? Homeless people walk everywhere all day long and often in wet socks from the rainy/snowy winter giving rise to rampant athlete's foot and painful infections that thrive when your feet are constantly wet. The homeless will not take their shoes and socks off even if they have a place to sleep in a shelter because they fear their shoes and socks will be stolen during the night. So everyone is given clean, dry socks everyday.
She then told us how easy it was to start a sock drive by telling us about the highschool students at her daughters school started a Sock Drive for the Homeless with one poster and talking to friends – they donated 200 pairs of socks.
2013 I volunteered to collect socks. My original goal was 100 pairs of socks. We reached that in less than 2 weeks and our total climbed to over 400 pairs of socks by the end of January 2014.
The Sock Granny was born! Read the MPA-society.org published news release:
MPA Society’s call for donations for new socks received an overwhelmingly positive response, thanks to the “Sock Granny.”
http://www.mpa-society.org/publications-resources/mpa-in-the-news/news-releases/2013/12/11/call-for-donations-for-new-socks
2015 is our 3rd annual Sock Drive and it is growing far beyond my wildest dreams. My Granddaugher has a passion to help homeless women and she is collecting for their special hygienic needs. Her shopping skills with cash donations has been labelled as briliant by the MPA representive, Molly McDonald.
A sample of Serene's items for the homeless women:
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