Scholarship program launches shoe drive

Posted on January 29, 2025

The Juneteenth Committee 1865 has launched a community shoe drive with five drop-off locations.

The drop-off locations include: Doctors’ Memorial Hospital (DMH) (second floor), New Mount Zion Baptist Church, Taylor County Public Library, the Boys & Girls Club and Town & Country Dry Cleaners.

“Seventy percent of the global population uses re-purposed shoes and clothing. Every 100 pairs of reused shoes help save about 300 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions, which contributes to global warming and climate change. It takes about 30 to 40 years for discarded shoes to decompose in landfills,” Drive Coordinator Jumelia Montgomery said.

“Did you know that over 300 million pairs of shoes end up in the landfill each year? Donating your shoes will help save the environment, it will support micro-entrepreneurs and help our young ladies further their education by supporting the Miss Juneteenth Scholarship Pageant,” she said.

The drive will end Friday, Feb. 28