Got old sneakers?

If your kids are anything like my boys, their feet seem to grow about a size a week. Perhaps that's a side effect of wanting to eat every 15 minutes or so? As a result, we've often found ourselves with shoes that no longer fit and are a little beat up -- but still useable.

Thrift stores and donations are always an option, but I've found our old shoes tend to be a little too dirty and/or slightly torn to go that route. Now I heard about another option: GreenSneakers, a charitable organization that distributes used shoes to people in some of the neediest countries around the world, including Haiti and parts of Africa and South America. The group also pays 50 cents per pound of sneakers (one pair can weigh up to two pounds, apparently), so it's a good way to raise money for a selected charity.

That's what a local physician's assistant is doing. Erin Padgett, who works at the Orthopedic & Spine Center in Newport News, is collecting sneakers to raise money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Collection bins will be out through next week at Tidewater Performance Center in Newport News and the four Tidewater Physical Therapy Clinics in Newport News and Hampton. 

For more information, go to www.tpti.com, or to get on the GreenSneakers site, go to www.greensneakers.org. 

I'm planning on cleaning out our closets a bit!