WaterStep’s Shoes for Water program relies heavily on volunteers to run shoe drives, sort shoes and to pick up shoes from area drop sites and deliver them to our Louisville headquarters. One of our most passionate volunteers is Jean Esper out of Springfield, KY. Jean just hosted her fourth annual shoe drive for WaterStep at River of Life Community Church in Springfield. In just a few hours, Jean and a couple of friends collected 870 pounds of shoes!
Three pairs of shoes equates to safe water for one person for the rest of their life. So, the 870 pounds of shoes collected by Jean will bring safe water to 290 people for life. This is an incredible impact. But, Jean doesn’t stop there. She collects shoes all year long from various organizations in her community. She told WaterStep, “In Springfield, I am known as the shoe lady.”
Jean enthusiastically spreads the word of WaterStep and our mission to save lives with safe water to everyone she meets. She recently shared with us that she frequently stops by yard sales and asks the people hosting the sale if she can have any shoes that don’t sell. Jean said she collects several bags of shoes this way. We love this creative thinking!
We are so thankful to have Jean as a part of WaterStep Nation. She is going to continue to make an impact on the global water crisis, one shoe at a time!
