Shoe Drive Propels Family's Adoption Plans
September 27, 2016 at 5:23 p.m.
By Dan [email protected]
Chase and Hayley Hand are working with a non-profit group, Funds2Org.com, which collects used shoes and redistributes the footwear oversees where they are resold.
For their part, the Hands receive 40 cents per pound for the shoes they collect to help defray up to $26,000 in their plans to adopt a 4-year-old, who they plan to name Shiloh.
The Hands have established numerous drop-off points for the shoes in North Manchester, Warsaw, Columbia City and Wabash and are pleased with the results so far, according to Hayley.
Bolstered by a handful of businesses and area churches, bags of shoes are already flooding in.
Family and friends are picking up shoes from various locations weekly and dropping them off at their home in North Manchester.
Last week, she said, the agency picked up 86 bags containing 2,150 pairs of shoes.
They also have family and friends in Indianapolis and West Lafayette who are collecting shoes and they also have teamed up with FFA groups at Wawasee and Whitko high schools.
Social media connections are also helping.
A woman in Louisiana, who learned of the shoe drive through Facebook, is preparing to send 250 pairs.
“She shipped us two or three boxes already,” Hand said. “She just feels this on her heart,” she said.
“I’m excited about it. It’s pretty neat how it’s all worked out,” Hayley said.
The shoe drive continues until Oct. 17.
Collection sites in Warsaw include Smith Tire Service, Shoe Sensation and Lowery’s Sewing and Vacuum.
Other locations are Hipp Drugs in South Whitely; The YMCA and Shoe Sensation in Columbia City; Shoe Sensation in Huntington; North Manchester First Brethren Church, The Anderson’s Inc. and the Manchester Early Learning Center in North Manchester.
The family chose to work with Funds2Org because of the group’s reputation in working with families seeking to adopt. They also received coaching on how to operate a shoe drive as well as some supplies.
Shoes are shipped to countries including Haiti, Ghana and Botswana, where locals are taught how to market and sell the shows.
After they become established, shoe sales can result in about $8 or $9 a day.
Adoption plans
Hand said she’s had an interest in adopting since she was a child.
She and Chase have three children between the ages of 2 and 5. They’ve been looking into adoption for about four years and focused on China for the past year.
After learning that domestic adoptions, especially ones with open adoption polices, are less likely to be approved for families that already have children, the couple turned their attention to international options.
She said research on the internet and connections through Facebook have helped.
“More and more doors were opening. We were meeting more and more people and seeing how they did it. That gave us inspiration and ideas,” Hand said.
Looking past the disability
They found information about Shiloh in June.
Photos of Shiloh quickly tugged at their heart.
“We weren’t expecting to adopt a blind child, but that’s what we felt we were supposed to do and we were drawn to her picture,” she said.
Shiloh was born with glaucoma, which can cause serious vision problems if not caught within a few months after birth.
They’ve also been told she suffers from cataracts and has some cognitive delays.
They’re unsure of her degree of blindness, but are gearing up to have that assessed once she arrives in Indiana.
The couple have preliminary approval from China and they still must work through the immigration process with the U.S. government.
They’ve already secured $4,000 through a grant and realize the shoe drive may not cover all of their costs.
Hand said they’re willing to consider all options, including the use of credit cards and home equity loan if needed.
“We’ll do whatever we have to to bring her home,” she said.
The Hands are expected to travel to China in March. They’re waiting on immigration approval from the United States.
“It’s all in God’s hands so what do I have to worry about,” she said.
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Chase and Hayley Hand are working with a non-profit group, Funds2Org.com, which collects used shoes and redistributes the footwear oversees where they are resold.
For their part, the Hands receive 40 cents per pound for the shoes they collect to help defray up to $26,000 in their plans to adopt a 4-year-old, who they plan to name Shiloh.
The Hands have established numerous drop-off points for the shoes in North Manchester, Warsaw, Columbia City and Wabash and are pleased with the results so far, according to Hayley.
Bolstered by a handful of businesses and area churches, bags of shoes are already flooding in.
Family and friends are picking up shoes from various locations weekly and dropping them off at their home in North Manchester.
Last week, she said, the agency picked up 86 bags containing 2,150 pairs of shoes.
They also have family and friends in Indianapolis and West Lafayette who are collecting shoes and they also have teamed up with FFA groups at Wawasee and Whitko high schools.
Social media connections are also helping.
A woman in Louisiana, who learned of the shoe drive through Facebook, is preparing to send 250 pairs.
“She shipped us two or three boxes already,” Hand said. “She just feels this on her heart,” she said.
“I’m excited about it. It’s pretty neat how it’s all worked out,” Hayley said.
The shoe drive continues until Oct. 17.
Collection sites in Warsaw include Smith Tire Service, Shoe Sensation and Lowery’s Sewing and Vacuum.
Other locations are Hipp Drugs in South Whitely; The YMCA and Shoe Sensation in Columbia City; Shoe Sensation in Huntington; North Manchester First Brethren Church, The Anderson’s Inc. and the Manchester Early Learning Center in North Manchester.
The family chose to work with Funds2Org because of the group’s reputation in working with families seeking to adopt. They also received coaching on how to operate a shoe drive as well as some supplies.
Shoes are shipped to countries including Haiti, Ghana and Botswana, where locals are taught how to market and sell the shows.
After they become established, shoe sales can result in about $8 or $9 a day.
Adoption plans
Hand said she’s had an interest in adopting since she was a child.
She and Chase have three children between the ages of 2 and 5. They’ve been looking into adoption for about four years and focused on China for the past year.
After learning that domestic adoptions, especially ones with open adoption polices, are less likely to be approved for families that already have children, the couple turned their attention to international options.
She said research on the internet and connections through Facebook have helped.
“More and more doors were opening. We were meeting more and more people and seeing how they did it. That gave us inspiration and ideas,” Hand said.
Looking past the disability
They found information about Shiloh in June.
Photos of Shiloh quickly tugged at their heart.
“We weren’t expecting to adopt a blind child, but that’s what we felt we were supposed to do and we were drawn to her picture,” she said.
Shiloh was born with glaucoma, which can cause serious vision problems if not caught within a few months after birth.
They’ve also been told she suffers from cataracts and has some cognitive delays.
They’re unsure of her degree of blindness, but are gearing up to have that assessed once she arrives in Indiana.
The couple have preliminary approval from China and they still must work through the immigration process with the U.S. government.
They’ve already secured $4,000 through a grant and realize the shoe drive may not cover all of their costs.
Hand said they’re willing to consider all options, including the use of credit cards and home equity loan if needed.
“We’ll do whatever we have to to bring her home,” she said.
The Hands are expected to travel to China in March. They’re waiting on immigration approval from the United States.
“It’s all in God’s hands so what do I have to worry about,” she said.
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