Andover High student wants to collect 2,000 pairs of shoes by Dec. 18

An Andover High School student is trying to collect 2,000 pairs of shoes by Dec. 18 for a global nonprofit called Soles4Souls.

Amelia Flores, a 17-year-old senior at Andover, started the local drive in response to the help her extended family received during Hurricane Katrina.

Flores said Soles4Souls was one of many aid organizations that helped her family in New Orleans.

“I felt like this was a way to give back to them and say thank you,” she said.

Soles4Souls collects donated shoes and distributes them to people in need in an effort to combat poverty.

The organization has distributed 26 million pairs of shoes since 2006 to 127 countries and in all 50 states, according to its website.

Flores said she’s collected about 1,000 pairs of shoes thus far – all of which are stored in her bedroom.

She said she started planning the shoe drive at the beginning of November and realized a goal of 2,000 could be attainable after she received support from bandmates at her high school.

She said she collected about 200 pairs of shoes from the initial drive.

“People were super willing to give their shoes, so I figured why not,” she said about expanding the project.

Flores said she then set up donation sites through church connections and went in person to set up additional collection sites.

Used and new shoes can be dropped off at Andover Dillons, Andover State Bank, Andover High School, Andover Middle School, Andover Central High School, Andover Central Middle School, Cottonwood Elementary School, Martin Elementary School and Chapel Hill United Methodist Church.

This story was originally published December 6, 2015 at 5:34 PM with the headline "Andover High student wants to collect 2,000 pairs of shoes by Dec. 18."