world’s biggest blogging charity challenge!
November 10th, 2008 @ 12:30 am
i’ve been talking about a secret project i’ve been working on the last few weeks…today’s the official launch day!
IT’S THE LAUNCH OF 50000SHOES.COM!
soles4souls is an amazing charity here in nashville that has one mission: get shoes to people who need shoes. over 300 million people around the world don’t have shoes and are forced to walk around unsafe and in potentially life-threatening conditions. not only is it unsafe physically, but having to look down all the time causes these people to also live without dignity and confidence.
just a few weeks ago, i was meeting with wayne elsey, the founder and CEO of s4s and he asked me what is the craziest thing we could do using social media to meet this huge need? what kind of ridiculous goal could we create? and literally ten minutes later we had the answer.
let’s get money raised for 50,000 shoes in 50 days and make it as easy as possible for people to not only donate online, but to spread the word about the campaign. the only way this goal can be reached is if you not only donate $5, but spread the word!
HOW DOES IT WORK?
go to 50000shoes.com. a $5 donation buys two pairs of shoes.
everyone has $5 (or more!). and everyone has 2 minutes. from start to finish, donating is literally three clicks. no fluff. no hassle. anyone can donate. it is so, so easy!
and it’s easy to spread the word. use the graphics on your blog. email everyone you know. join the facebook group and ask your friends to do the same!
YOU CAN WIN A TRIP TO GIVE SOMEONE THEIR FIRST PAIR OF SHOES!
besides the fact that the blogging world can literally impact 50,000 people before the end of the year, one person (and their guest) will be chosen at random to hand deliver the shoes they purchased on a s4s trip to mexico. can you imagine handing someone their very first pair of shoes? it could be a child. or it could be a mother. or a father. or a grandmother. who knows?!
PLEASE DON’T CLICK AWAY…
we could have made the goal attainable - like 5000 shoes in 50 days. i have no doubt that could happen. but we wanted to show a watching world the positive power of social media. we wanted this to be a challenge for bloggers and people to unite in a way never before seen!
50,000 pairs of shoes in 50 days. THAT’S HUGE!!!!!
please donate. please blog about this. please email everyone you know about this.
five bucks. three clicks. two minutes. that’s all and it can make a HUGE difference!!
THE MATH
if 500 people influence 10 people to donate, and those people influence 5 more, that’s 50,000 pairs of shoes (because remember - $5 buys 2 pairs!)…please help make this a reality! let’s blow it out of the water…can we raise enough for 100,000 pairs? I THINK SO!!!
300 million people around the world need you!
chris and i donated on friday. we are spreading the word today.
please join in! even non bloggers can help. just email everyone you know! take up a collection in your office or at your church. do you know someone in the press who can do a story on this? be creative!!!
forbes.com and cnbc.com have already picked up on this…and we have only just begun. with your help (and only with your help) this can be a worldwide movement. i truly believe it can!
are you in?
====
Nashville-based Soles4Souls(TM) facilitates the donations of both new and used shoes, which are used to aid the hurting worldwide. Since its inception, Soles4Souls has distributed more than 3.5 million pairs (or one pair every 23 seconds) to people in 61 countries, including Honduras, Romania, Thailand, and the Sudan. The charity has been featured on CNN Headline News, NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams, ABC News, FOX, CBS, and hundreds of regional outlets around North America. Soles4Souls is a 501(c)(3) recognized by the IRS; donating parties are eligible for tax advantages. Visit www.giveshoes.org for more information.
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ryan guard said,
November 10, 2008 at 1:19 am
Mine’s up!
Hope my youth group can do some damage.
Sarah Valente said,
November 10, 2008 at 1:37 am
I’m in! I actually had the privilege of giving a few people their first pair of shoes on a jr. high mission trip. I’ll never forget that feeling!
Charles Lee said,
November 10, 2008 at 1:54 am
Thanks for the note…Just donated and posted it on my blog as well.
brandi said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:59 am
love this.
mine’s up too.
excited to see this goal not only met but exceeded. :)
Anna said,
November 10, 2008 at 4:45 am
I blogged about it :) (And donated, of course)
Karen said,
November 10, 2008 at 6:52 am
I’m excited about today. Just posted on my blog. Anticipating great things!
Amanda said,
November 10, 2008 at 7:08 am
I posted on my blog and donated this morning! I can’t wait to see the outcome!
Rodney Olsen said,
November 10, 2008 at 7:56 am
I just bought two pairs of shoes for only $5. What a bargain.
My post is up!
Scott Williams said,
November 10, 2008 at 8:36 am
LifeChurch.tv just participated in this… our campus alone brought in almost 1,400 pairs of shoes.
Anne- Good work on being a part blessing some orphans all around the world.
Monica @ Paper Bridges said,
November 10, 2008 at 8:48 am
I got bold too, I asked 50 of my readers to donate at least $5. Lord willing, we’ll get there!
daniel d said,
November 10, 2008 at 8:58 am
I’m in. Just donated and posted on my blog. Wonder if we should get everyone we know to Twitter #Soles4Shoes or some other event tag at one time and see if we can blow Twitter up with it. Anne… you or Los could cordinate easily.
Biscuet said,
November 10, 2008 at 9:28 am
I’m already seeing some momentum from the post i did about this a few minutes ago. Thanks, Anne, for the opportunity… you rock.
Jessica said,
November 10, 2008 at 9:39 am
This is such a great idea! Here from BooMama’s blog. I donated and will be posting today.
paul snyder said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:05 am
mine is up
http://paulsnyder.wordpress.com/
Brad Ruggles said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:15 am
Just finished my post on this.
Lisa and I are both giving towards this. Even my 7-year-old daughter Chloe is buying shoes with her own money.
I’ll continue to spread the word over the next 50 days.
JMC said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:22 am
It took literally 2 minutes! Personal and work blogs are both sporting a Soles for Souls banner today!
Eve Annunziato said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:31 am
I’m in… Oh, and it was sooooooo easy - the site looks great!! I’m excited and can’t wait to watch the numbers grow all for His glory! I love the heart of the S4S ministry.
Angela Ramsey said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:53 am
Thanks for the opportunity to be apart of something so great! I was actually shoe shopping yesterday and then thought about this charity and realizing how many shoes I actually do have decided not to buy a new pair and donated instead.
Shawn said,
November 10, 2008 at 11:09 am
Mine is up too. Thanks for letting me be part of this.
Tony York said,
November 10, 2008 at 11:25 am
Its up and running… hopefully we will see this goal surpassed.
Reverb said,
November 10, 2008 at 11:32 am
In like Flynn. I bought 20 pairs and it’s up on my blog this morning…lot’s of people buying shoes right now. Good stuff!
http://www.thisisreverb.com
Tiffany said,
November 10, 2008 at 12:03 pm
Blogged and donated! Can’t wait to see how many others help!
Jesica said,
November 10, 2008 at 12:18 pm
I LOVE this! It’s on my blog. Can’t wait to watch what happens.
Thanks for the heads up!
alex mclean said,
November 10, 2008 at 1:01 pm
Mines up! This is going to be AWESOME!
liz said,
November 10, 2008 at 2:05 pm
donated and blogged!
awesome idea!
Heidi Reed said,
November 10, 2008 at 2:11 pm
My post has been up for a few hours. I’ve already received people commenting that they’ve donated. This is awesome, Anne. Thanks for letting us in on it!!
Pam C said,
November 10, 2008 at 2:32 pm
Donated and posted on blog, Facebook and Twitter early today. Praying for God to do the impossible! Thanks for leading the charge!
Pam
Susanne Reeder said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:15 pm
I’m IN!!
I donated, and posted about it on my blog.
(It’s amazing how God uses you to give me opportunities to “practice what I preach”. I just did a blog about compassion/generosity this AM! Last time I did something like that, you lead the “Mosquito Net” charge, and I not only donated to that, but ended up sponsoring a beautiful little girl in Honduras! Thanks for letting Him speak to me through you!!!)
Heading over to Twitter and Facebook, now.
Thanks for letting us know about this awesome opportunity.
Can’t WAIT to see what GOD does with this!!! ;-)
stefanie said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:19 pm
donated, blogged, facebooked.
can’t wait to see what happens…
melinda said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:26 pm
http://melindalgroth.blogspot.com/2008/11/shoe-shopping-spree.html
I love it! Great think-tank!
Jeff said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:52 pm
cool. will blog soon.
Crystal Renaud said,
November 10, 2008 at 3:55 pm
it is so cool to see God’s hands at work through all these comments!!!!!
Jayma said,
November 10, 2008 at 4:18 pm
donate. check.
blog. check.
Adam Herod said,
November 10, 2008 at 4:35 pm
Donated. Blogged. Myspaced .Twittered. Facebooked.
Thanks for letting us play a part. I’m also anticipating great things!
Carol said,
November 10, 2008 at 4:48 pm
I donated and posted, too!
Mark Jaffrey said,
November 10, 2008 at 4:59 pm
Darn, I commented back at 8:50ish am your time - where’s it gone? Could you check your spam or whatever?
Anyway, shoes purchased, blog posted, facebook group joined, world changed (just a tiny bit).
Great stuff, Anne.
Jeff said,
November 10, 2008 at 5:06 pm
just donated. also in the process of blogging. btw, check out this article i did on Wayne and S4S about a year ago: http://www.wreckedfortheordinary.com/index.asp?filename=soles4souls-1
Lisa said,
November 10, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Got it on my blog!!
ryan guard said,
November 10, 2008 at 6:16 pm
is there any way to find out how many shoes have been purchased today?
Susie A. said,
November 10, 2008 at 7:25 pm
Anne,
I added it to my blog….the cool thing, I have worked a camp (Royal Family Kids Camp) for the past few years. This past year….Soles 4 Souls partnered with RFKC camps and provided the kids at all the camps a pair of shoes. These kids who come from abused and neglected homes were quite pleased to receive a new pair of clogs. So you have my support for this….
Thanks and Be Blessed!!!
S.
Jeff said,
November 10, 2008 at 10:20 pm
hit me up when you get a chance. i got an opportunity to talk about with you, regarding this project.
Kevin Twombly said,
November 10, 2008 at 11:55 pm
donated, blogged, twitted, facebooked. Thanks for getting is mobilized Anne!
Elle P said,
November 11, 2008 at 9:54 am
’tis on my blog. here’s hoping to lots ‘o’ shoes!
Mike Ellis, Church For Men Florida said,
November 11, 2008 at 10:49 am
Anne,
Until I started working with the homeless, I had no idea how much they need shoes. Check out this post I did below.
http://churchformenflorida.blogspot.com/2008/03/put-yourself-in-their-shoes.html
Works with Guys said,
November 11, 2008 at 1:25 pm
bought four pairs of shoes and twittered it……will post a blog later this week! I goes well with our idea of promoting a different kind of Christmas as well!
Jeremy said,
November 11, 2008 at 2:06 pm
We are up and running as of yesterday. 3 different sites! Awesome idea..great ministry and seems like its working!
jill said,
November 11, 2008 at 8:00 pm
I posted a quick blog about it and am heading over to donate…
mama dup said,
November 13, 2008 at 11:58 am
i’m in -
and i posted it.
thanks for letting us participate.
:)
ryan guard said,
November 14, 2008 at 1:15 pm
I was trying to figure out some creative way to get the word out and get some more shoes bought, but I decided to just buy another pair and stop thinking.