Russell A.

On a trip to Nebraska at age six, Russell and his family went to a reservation where Russell saw a group of children playing with one pair of shoes, taking turns. That moment sparked a question in Russell’s mind that he would continue to ask himself as he got older: How was it fair that these kids were playing with one pair of shoes when people around him were throwing out shoes left and right? Russell was encouraged by his parents to think about the problem, and though it took time, effort, and encouragement from his family, from there Sole2Soul was born. Sole2Soul is a youth-led nonprofit organization that aims to solve distributional inequality in footwear. Sole2Soul operates across the world bringing used shoes that still have miles, life, and activity left to those who need them.