Soccer Saves Lives T-shirts

We'd like to promote the student project of a current Oakland Mills High School senior Kevin Sullivan. It's great to support local initiatives, especially when they involve projects that really encourage young people to learn the importance of giving. We ask that you take the time to ready about Soccer Saves Lives and the impact it will make.

The description goes as follows...

Soccer Saves Lives is a student-led organization out of Oakland Mills High School that aims to educate teens and adults alike on the HIV/AIDS epidemic in West Africa. It is common that West African countries may not be given the same attention as other areas of Africa who have significant problems with HIV/AIDS. However, in Nigeria alone, more than 2.5 million people have AIDS. The suffering is real, but the possibility for education and prevention of HIV/AIDS becomes increasingly more likely if we act now.

Soccer Saves Lives sells t-shirts for the cause and uses the international connector of people, cultures and races to help raise money and supplies for children in West Africa. With the help of our community, and particularly the soccer community, Soccer Saves Lives can provide the resources and education our brothers and sisters in West Africa need in order to live HIV/AIDS free

As part of this initiative, 100% of the money from t-shirt sales will go to hospitals and youth organizations in West Africa who can provide direct aid for those most in need. Thank you for your support and let us as a community put a kick against HIV/AIDS!

T-shirts are only $10. Buy one to wear around town, while practicing soccer or to sleep in. Buy them for your intramural teams, summer leagues, etc.

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Collections, Collections, Collections

This weekend we have boxes set up at Covenant Park for the Baltimore Mania tournament by Elite Tournaments. If anyone wants to donate cleats, the boxes will be located right next to the tournament tent.

Additionally, we have recently picked up our collection boxes at the Soccer American store locations, and are happy to report three full boxes of cleats, shin guards, balls and shirts. Thank you to everyone who donated. The boxes are still there so if you still want to donate cleats just drop by the stores.

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Reliable Grassroots Connections

We just saw this article on The New York Times website and were inspired to write a blog entry. Unfortunately, not all the charitable contributions sent to needy individuals throughout the world reaches actually reach hungry mouths. It's possible that half the food aid sent to Somalia is sold off by corrupt officials, including radical Islamic militants and even United Nations World Food Program employees! Instead of children suffering from kwashiorkor and other malnutrition illnesses being nourished with the food provided by intergovernmental and non-governmental agencies, greedy individuals feel the need to profit. Hungry mouths stay hungry, more people continue to die from starvation and immorality is fueled by good-samaritanship.

Cleats For Bare Feet may not be putting food in the stomachs of the famished, but the relationship remains the same. Soccer cleats sent abroad can fall into unfortunate hands and not reach the kids for whom they were meant. Instead of becoming the next Pelé, children risk continuing to kick makeshift soccer balls with their bare skin. That's why Cleats For Bare Feet has been doing all that we can to find reliable, trustworthy grassroots organizations and individuals to whom we can send soccer cleats domestically and abroad. We have connections in the United States, Kenya, Côte d'Ivoire, and will hopefully soon have more contacts in South Africa, Senegal, Morocco, Brazil, Costa Rica and Vietnam. 

If you know of any trustworthy person or organization who would like to be on the receiving end of some recycled, second-hand soccer cleats for needy children, contact us!

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Columbia Flier Article

Thank you to the Columbia Flier and columnist Stan Ber for including Cleats for Bare Feet in the sports column of this week's issue. We appreciate the help they have given us to get the word out. Thanks for lending a helping hand to a foot in need

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Park and Friends School

We would like to extend a big thank you to both Park School and Friends School of Baltimore. Both schools recently finished their cleat collections. Each school was able to collect around 30 pairs of cleats.

Each collection, no matter how small, is helping us out. This is really the grassroots way of going about making a difference. To all of the schools, clubs and businesses still holding collection sites, keep up the good work.

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