Maybe you found a shoe box and you’re not sure what to do with it. Maybe you’ve been on the hunt for an empty shoe box and can’t find one. Or maybe someone has already donated a shoe box to the local charity and all of your shoes are too big for one! Whatever your reason, we’re here to help. We’ll go over where to donate unused shoe boxes in the USA.
If you’re looking for a way to keep your shoes in order, why not donate an empty shoe box to someone in need? You can donate empty shoe boxes to people who are struggling to make ends meet, seniors staying at home alone without much mobility, homeless shelters, animal shelters (the animals love them too!), and much more! Donations like these are much-needed by many places.
Many families in need can’t afford storage or closets, so they will often use an empty shoe box as a makeshift way to store their belongings. These donations help them out by giving them storage space.
Your donation can help a senior in a wheelchair move around more easily if they need to get to things like medicine or cook their meals. They can also store some of their belongings inside their empty shoe box.
Where to Donate Empty Shoe Boxes?
List of locations to donate empty shoe boxes:
Roser Church
Roser Church is a wonderful place to donate an empty shoe box. It’s a church that caters to the homeless and those who are in need. They have a great mission for this project, as they provide shelter to those who cannot afford their own home. The people there have a lot of projects going on, including Habitat for Humanity, vocational programs for women, and so much more. You can take your empty shoe box there and it will be put to good use!
Address: 512 Pine Ave, Anna Maria, FL 34216, United States
Phone: +1 941-778-0414
The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a wonderful place to donate an empty shoe box as well! Their locations throughout the US give needy families the opportunity to settle into life instead of living out on the streets or in shelters. The locations are great places to donate empty shoe boxes because of their mobile storage services.
These charities are also known for their very helpful thrift stores that accept donations. You can donate an empty shoe box to any of their locations and it will go a long way!
Address: 615 Slaters Lane, Alexandria, Virginia 22314
Operation Christmas Child (The original)
This is a great organization that helps those who cannot afford presents for the holidays. They collect shoes, clothes, and books and then pass them out to those who need them most. The organization is wonderful and we can’t wait to see what they do with your empty shoe box!
The location in Nampa Idaho is where you should head if you need your shoes donated.
The American Red Cross
The American Red Cross is a wonderful organization which helps those who are suffering from natural disasters. Their services also cater to those suffering from poverty, hunger, or abuse. You can help them out by donating an empty shoe box to be used for hurricane season storage, so others can use it as well!
They provide emergency assistance and disaster relief to victims of home fires, floods, storms, earthquakes and other disasters. They also support the military members who have been deployed overseas or are suffering from war injuries regarding food, clothing and shelter.
The American National Red Cross needs lots of donations for hurricane season. Their storage room (located in Nampa, Idaho) constantly needs donations such as:
They need your shoe boxes as well! Their storage unit is constantly filled with clothing and other donations. They can always use some help with storage, and your shoe box donation will go a long way!
The Church Thrift Store (Bring your own box)
Many locations accept donations of unused shoe boxes. The Church Thrift store in Franklin, Tennessee is a great place to donate your empty shoe box, as they accept shoes and clothing.
- The Church Thrift Store in Cheyenne, Wyoming accepts donation.
- The Church Thrift Store in North Little Rock, Arkansas accepts donation.
- The Church Thrift store in Port St. Lucie, Florida accepts donation.
- The Church Thrift Store in Mt. Vernon Ohio accepts donation.
- The Church Thrift store of Lawrenceville Georgia accepts donation.
- The Church Thrift Store of Paris Indiana accepts donations only on Fridays from 9-11 am or on Saturdays from 9-5 pm or on Sundays 12-5pm
Donation Barn Hours: Open Regular posted hours Tuesday – Friday 10:00 am – 1:00 pm
The YMCA
The YMCA of Chattanooga accepts donations of empty shoe boxes. All donations are used for a variety of purposes pertaining to social services, family services, and community building efforts. They help with a multitude of things, including but not limited to:
They will help with troubled teens, or any programs relating to troubled/at-risk youth. They also help those who are homeless or those looking for summer work.
This location has lots of opportunities for those who wish to donate empty shoe boxes!
The National Association of Senior Housing
These locations provide affordable housing and services for seniors throughout the US. It’s a great location to donate your shoe box, as it helps many seniors who often cannot afford their own personal storage.
This location is located in Fayetteville and accepts all donations. They accept clothing and shoes, and other miscellaneous household goods like.
Open Time: available Monday – Friday from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Eastern Time
Animal House Shelters (If you fill the box with straw, animals like kittens and puppies will be able to nap in them)
You can donate an empty shoe box to animal shelters, as they often need something to put the animals into until they find their forever home. The animals usually just sleep in them at first, but after a while they will get more comfortable and start using it as a bed of their own. It’s a great way to help some animals out!
Open Time: 11am – 7pm Mon – Fri & Sun, 9am – 7pm Saturday
Address: 13005 Ernesti Rd, Huntley, IL 60142
Why Do People Need to Donate Shoe Box?
As the holiday season approaches, many are taking time out of their busy work schedule to prepare for the upcoming festivities. Among these preparations, one that is often forgotten comes in the form of a box. Well not just any box but a shoe box.
After all, it would be wrong and cruel not to give presents at this time of year and this includes giving back to those less fortunate than us. So if you’re looking for an opportunity to give back or even if you’ve already done so, here’s why people need to donate shoe box:
It allows children from third world countries such as African nations to feel happy too
Kids these days have everything they want and sometimes more than what they need including toys. If they’re lucky, some may even receive an actual gift during the holiday season. However, not all kids are this fortunate and will go without presents. To give these unfortunate children hope, shoe box donations allow them to believe that there are people out there who cares about them too.
Given that many of these kids don’t even have roofs over their heads or clothes on their backs, receiving a simple toy is like getting the best present ever! It can make them feel happy for days on end and this results in their overall happiness increasing which is what Christmas is truly about at the end of the day.
Donations allow kids to learn how to give back too
In third world countries where poverty is rampant, one thing that isn’t easily available are opportunities to help those around us. Kids may not know what poverty is all about as they’ve never experienced it but that doesn’t mean they should be deprived of opportunities to help out others in need.
As such, shoe box donations allow kids the ability to experience giving back to their community by placing items into these boxes which are then donated to others who are less fortunate than themselves. This will teach them the joys of giving back early on in life which can lead to a lifetime of helping others.
It helps educate people about other cultures
Shoe box donations rely on cultural differences among people throughout the world for inspiration with some empty boxes being shipped from one country and filled up with gifts in another where they’ll be sent onwards to others.
This not only teaches them to be open-minded but also gets kids thinking about the cultures of other countries and how they celebrate Christmas compared to their own. In doing so, it can inspire a spirit of adventure in children which is great when you think about it!
It creates a sense of community
Sadly, people these days don’t know their neighbours as well as they should do for many reasons. However, with shoe boxes being shipped from one country to another, this provides all who participate with a sense of community where the entire world becomes interconnected in some way.
In doing so, we need to take time every now and then to get together with our neighbours or go out into the local area