300,000,000 children in the world do not own a pair of shoes.
We have created durable, inexpensive shoes and provide them to children who would otherwise never own a pair. Now, we need funding for large production.
The more funding we receive, the less expensive each pair of shoes will be and the more feet we can protect.
Many of the donated shoes are in poor condition or manufactured for the 1st world. These cheap shoes provide a temporary solution at best and can actually harm a child at worst. Putting a poorly manufactured shoe on a child means that within a short period
of time, that child will once again be barefoot. Except now, their feet have no calluses to protect them. Their feet are now soft and can be injured much more easily.
Long Term Solution
In many places, you cannot attend school without a pair of shoes. Ultimately, we will want to find schools that require this and create 'shoe banks'. So a child receives a pair when they enroll (if they need them) and when they outgrow them, they turn them
in for the next size. The original shoes get cleaned up and ready for the next child.
This creates a hand-up not a hand-out.
Their last pair should last them a lifetime - we have built them to be incredibly durable and sturdy enough to last several lifetimes with some repair.
Program for Groups
We have been assembling sandals for four years in a program called Sole Purpose. Corporate participants assemble sandals and host a shoe drive. These new shoes are our third version of our assembly process. The sandals have been great and inspired us to
create something more durable and less expensive.
Based upon our success with our sandals in corporate groups, we want to expand our program to every conceivable group that may want to come together and impact the world. What better way to do this than through providing for children.
Below is a group of 1,000 assembling our first sandals!
Materials:
Currently we are using these materials for the shoes and we will continue to test and find new materials that will work for different areas of the world.
Soles - recycled automobile tires. Tires are shredded and put into our molds. The soles on the shoes will be almost as strong as the old automobile tires, which means that each sole should last many children's feet.
Uppers - currently the uppers are felt. We are working with several manufacturers to use the materials they throw away. For example, there is a saddle manufacturer (for horses) and they have two pieces of leather left over that is perfect
for the smaller shoes. They currently have to pay to dispose of these pieces. They will give us these for free and we need to then make them into uppers, which is a fration of the cost of purchasing leather.
Below is one of our leather prototypes - Awesome!!
Stitching - Currently we are using recycled bicycle tubing to stitch the soles and uppers. The stitching does not touch the ground so this works, but is currently the weakest part of the shoe. We are investigating recycled monofilament
line (fishing line) which you can get in any thickness and color. However, it does not stretch. We will continue to research until we find the best long-term solution.
Lacing - We are using recycled laces from plastic water bottles.
Funding Milestones!
$7,500 - The Tipping Point
Includes one mold ($4,600), enough uppers and lacing for 100 pair, plus the rewards for our completely awesome donors!
Overfunding!
The minimum we need to begin is $7,500. However, with additional funds, we will purchase more molds, up to 8, which will reduce the cost of the soles dramatically.
$50,000, Unlocks Launch Party!
At $50,000 we have a Launch Party in Boulder CO,. We will have an incredible dinner and reception before the party as well as a surprise celebrity who has already agreed to make it. Everyone who comes will get to help assemble a pair of shoes with us!
$200,000, Unlocks Trip to Africa!
At $200,000 we will take a trip to Africa to distribute the shoes and MUCH more.
Who is Be Legendary?
We are a social enterprise that helps people share their best with the world. We researched legendary people (Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Martin Luther King) from their very beginnings to their amazing legacies. Here were questions I had:
What were they like when they were 'normal'?
How did they create such amazing lives?
What do they have in common?
What are the smallest steps they took that are repeatable?
Can we learn to do what they have done to create our own version of 'legendary'?
The result of 10 years of research, experimentation and experience is the Roadmap to Legendary, 7 guiding principles to create a legendary life.
We use the Roadmap to help individuals and organizations to discover the best of who they are and take the small steps that will keep them on their road to 'legendary'.
Sole Purpose is one of several philanthropic endeavors we at Be Legendary believe in and are passionate about!
We 'discovered' our best is to help people see how completely awesome they are in fun experiential events. Sole Purpose is part of that!
We put thousands of children, not favored by fortune, on brand new bicycles every year through a program called Building A Dream. Bicycles are empowerment, freedom, independence. And if a child rides a bicycle to school before the age of 12, they are 65%
less likely to be obese as an adult.
Soccer fields in Africa are built through our program called Power of reCreation - the rediscovery of your creativity through recreation (play). Indestructable soccer balls are also donated to the communties that receive the soccer field.
All of our programs are based upon a 'Hand up, not Hand out'. Everything is earned and not given. The single exception is the first pair of shoes a child will receive when going to school through Sole Purpose! After that, they 'earn' their next pair by
staying in school.
You can find out more about Be Legendary:
Roadmap to Legendary
Corporate Programs
Follow us on Facebook!