Thirty thousand pairs of shoes were laid out around the reflecting pool near the U.S. Capitol to draw attention to the genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan. Each pair of shoes represented 100 lives lost.
Students from Loudoun County's Briar Woods High School (Ashburn, VA) collected the shoes, which will be distributed by Soles4Souls to Sudan and other parts of the world.
"The work that the students put in prior to this event really means so much," said Paul Wilson, president of the Soles4Souls World Outreach Division. "Some people do not have one pair of shoes."
Many of the shoes will be distributed in Sudan, with the rest given to homeless shelters, missions and international aid organizations across North America and other parts of the world. The remainders that are unacceptable for distribution will be recycled for playground surfaces.
Nick Carmean, 17, a senior at Briar Woods, said: "History teaches us that you have to pay attention to world events, and with the genocide taking place in Darfur, you have to do something about it."
Carmean was a student in Logan Williams's international relations class, which spearheaded the project. Former heavy weight boxing champion Riddick Bowe and Nyasha Zimucha, Miss Africa USA 2008-09, were also on hand for the event.
