VOICE NEWSBOYS LAUNCH KICKS FOR AFRICA SHOE DRIVE

VOICE newsboys & Coordinator Taj directing KICKS FOR AFRICA, a project collecting gently worn athletic shoes to ship to African teenagers with messages of friendship and invitations to correspond with Chicago youth. (Photo by Isaac Jones)

Paperboys for THE VOICE Newspapers are collecting gently worn athletic shoes to ship to young people in Africa. THE VOICE teens came up with the idea for the project while discussing how many pairs of shoes each has under his bed but aren’t being worn because they are out of style. They decided to investigate the possibility of sending the shoes to teenagers in Africa and including messages to the new owners of the shoes. The messages will contain greetings to the African teens from the Chicagoans, plus contact information like facebook pages, handles on Twitter, and mailing addresses for building relationships between American and African youth.

Shoes are being collected at THE VOICE Newspapers, 5236 West North Avenue, and VOICE paperboys are asking fellow students at their schools to participate. Deadline for collecting shoes is March 21. KICKS FOR AFRICA is being coordinated by Taj, a dance therapist and fitness coach who works with THE VOICE.

For information on KICKS FOR AFRICA, to donate shoes, or to establish a collection site at a church or school, call 773/889-0880.