It was the simplicity of the Shoebox Project that caught Palo Alto resident Sharon Wong’s eye. “We were on vacation in Canada and I saw signs all over for The Shoebox Project so I started asking about it,” she recalls. “When I learned what a simple, high impact way it is to help women in need, I decided to start the first American chapter in Palo Alto.”
The Shoebox Project engages community volunteers to create boxes filled with socks, toiletries and other small items that help women living in shelters feel cared for and pampered during the holidays. The care that goes into packing each box in beautiful wrapping paper communicates to women living in difficult situations that they are valued and special.
With a goal of gathering 150 shoeboxes by December 18, Sharon has been holding ‘parties’ at her house where neighbors and friends bring donations and work together to fill and wrap the boxes. She has also worked with local scout troops, service clubs at different schools and institutions like the Eichler Swim and Tennis Club in Palo Alto.
Once filled, the boxes will be donated to several shelters in the Bay Area, including Community Overcoming Relationship Abuse (CORA) in San Mateo and Asian Women’s Shelter in Santa Clara. As Ann Le, an AACI legal advocate and a domestic violence survivor told ABC News in a recent story about the Shoebox Project, the shoeboxes can truly brighten up someone’s life. “We feel more confident, being stronger, being more independent and we can make it…”
Palo Alto Pulse dropped by one of Sharon’s neighborhood gatherings to learn more about the project and why it’s inspired so much local interest in Palo Alto and beyond. Volunteers had put together an assembly line of lovely items, including beauty supplies donated by Textures Salon in Menlo Park, and were busy creating thoughtful arrangements in each wrapped box.
There was a buzz of laughter and connection from the volunteers, who were grateful to Sharon for bringing together a community effort to help women in need. As Catherine Crystal Foster explained, “I have volunteered in battered women’s shelters and I know that it’s the small things that can make a big difference.”
Jennifer Seto, another volunteer, agreed. “A little goes so far for women who don’t have much and this is a great way to give back during the holidays.”
There is still time to donate shoeboxes to the Palo Alto chapter of The Shoebox Project. The Keen Shoe Garage in downtown Palo Alto is giving away shoeboxes, and is a donation drop off location. Boxes can also be delivered to the Eichler Tennis Club at 3539 Louis Rd in Palo Alto, or to Sharon’s house. For more information, contact Sharon Wong at paloalto@shoeboxproject.com .
Happy Shoebox Project volunteers gather around Sharon
