More Thanks and a Shopping Trip!

Thanks Lisa Coonts for the school supplies! Lisa is a Norwex Sales Consultant with me and was happy to give supplies for the school. The paint will be exciting!

The boys and I were at Target a couple days ago, and saw that school supplies were going on clearance already. Markers were $0.38 per package. Wow - that is a crazy cheap price. I just couldn't pass them up. So, I put out a call on Facebook. Who could kick in $5 to buy markers? And when the store ran out, I would move onto crayons, pencils, and more.

Here we are, on the way to Target, to get supplies.

Filling up the shopping cart. Jax and I made 6 piles of 4 items each. Why such an odd combo? Target has a coupon program that had school supplies at 10% off. You can use that program up to 6 times per day, and get 4 of the same item per scan. We were working the system to get the most discounts possible!

In the end $90 was pledged from friends on Facebook. We went a little over, and here is what $109.18 looks like. 100 blue pens. 140 black pens. 230 markers. 576 pencils. 576 crayons. 668 colored pencils. 24 pencil sharpeners. This will be combined with the supplies already on hand, and hopefully more supplies coming, and will be given to Brown's Town Infant School to assist with the school's needs. Thank you to Amy M, Tere G, Chris D, Emily B, Tanya K, Lisa N, Stephanie B, Patti F, Alicia H, Deidre E, Rachel S, Dana A, and Sue H. Your love went a long way!

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

Total shoe count: 12 (0m, 12w)

For those keeping track, our current total sock need is as follows:

0 pairs of men's socks, 0 pairs received

24 pairs of women's socks, 0 pairs received

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees.
Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10shttp://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
Visit our SignUpGenius page - www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0A4DA9A622A64-soleful 
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases  twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

Some Thank Yous!

Things are starting to pick up a bit around here. Donations are starting to trickle in, and that is great news! I'd like to share some thank yous.


Thank you Brandie Campbell for the running shoes and tech shirts. Brandie and I run together with the KC Express women's running group here in Kansas City.

Thank you Lindi Kelley for the box of crayons! Lindi and I are in MOMS Club together.

Thank you Melissa Stringer for more shoes! Melissa and I also run in the KC Express together. She is knows as the Quiet one...I am not.

Thank you Monika Ogilvie for the school supplies. We are in MOMS Club together and our kids have been known to roam the aisles at Target a time or two as well.

Thank you Sonya Hooper and Melissa Stringer for the suitcases. Sonya got my name from Monika and was happy to pass along her suitcase. I'm grateful to have it and put it to good use!

Thank you Sonya Hooper for the three pairs of shoes! They are great.

These are some supplies I picked up today. This kind of classroom decoration would be very welcomed at Brown's Town Infant School. They need bright and fun things to decorate the rooms and get the children excited about school.

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

Total shoe count: 12 (0m, 12w)

For those keeping track, our current total sock need is as follows:

0 pairs of men's socks, 0 pairs received

24 pairs of women's socks, 0 pairs received

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees.
Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10shttp://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
Visit our SignUpGenius page - www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0A4DA9A622A64-soleful 
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases  twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

Just some updates

Things have been a little quiet here. I've been updating the facebook page on a regular basis (www.facebook.com/SolefulSuitcases) but the blog has lacked in love. Sorry. School started up again, life has gotten in the way, blah, blah, blah. Either way, the show must go on, so no worries there.

To bring you all up to date, there is a total of nine pairs of lady shoes sitting in my basement. (Thanks Brandie C. and Melissa S. for their donations.) That means I need 18 pairs of lady socks for those.

I also purchased some supplies when I was doing my own back to school shopping, so we've got a start. We still need way more! Like way, way more, but if Rome wasn't built in a day, the suitcases won't get filled that fast either.

If you feel so inclined, I'd love if you would share Soleful Suitcases on your facebook or twitter feed. The more people that know about this little project of ours, the more love we can share. I truely believe that people want to help, and just need to know who needs the help. So here I am, raising my hand. Help me! Help me bring a little relief, some comfort, and a lot of smiles to the people of Jamaica.

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

Care to sponsor a bag?

Bag 1 - $50
Bag 2 - $50
Bag 3 - $50
Bag 4 - $50
Bag 5 - $50
Bag 6 - $50

Total shoe count: 9 (0m, 9w)

For those keeping track, our current total sock need is as follows:

0 pairs of men's socks, 0 pairs received

18 pairs of women's socks, 0 pairs received

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees.
Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10shttp://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
Visit our SignUpGenius page - www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0A4DA9A622A64-soleful 
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases  twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

Scratch That!

So, I spoke with our nanny, Tamara. I guess there was a mix-up. When I first spoke to her about Brown's Town Infant School, I thought she said there were 60 students. And I really thought it would be great to provide each kid with a backpack stuffed with needed supplies. When I went to double check with her a few days ago, I learned that there wasn't 60 students. Instead, there are 360 students!! Woah. There goes my plans for individual packs.

So, while its not straight back to the drawing board, it is not quite what I envisioned. I'm still going to take as much as possible. I've created a Sign-Up Genius page to help people see what is needed and what needs have already been filled. Please check it out and help if you can.

www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0A4DA9A622A64-soleful

Care to sponsor a bag?

Bag 1 - $50
Bag 2 - $50
Bag 3 - $50
Bag 4 - $50
Bag 5 - $50
Bag 6 - $50

Total shoe count: 2 (0m, 2w)

For those keeping track, our current total sock need is as follows:

0 pairs of men's socks, 16 pairs received

4 pairs of women's socks, 0 pairs received

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees.
Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10shttp://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
Visit our SignUpGenius page - www.SignUpGenius.com/go/20F0A4DA9A622A64-soleful 
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases  twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

First Shoes Donated!

Yahoo! Yipee! Yee-ha!

We have received our first shoe donations!

(Ok, well technically I received these shoes a couple months ago, and they have just been sitting in my garage. 1 - I finally got around to getting them out of the garage and into the bins in my basement set aside for Jamaica supplies. 2 - I wasn't focusing on our Jamaica trip since it was a bit far off. )

Anyway, thanks to Melissa Stringer for the two pairs of shoes!

Care to sponsor a bag?

Bag 1 - $50
Bag 2 - $50
Bag 3 - $50
Bag 4 - $50
Bag 5 - $50
Bag 6 - $50

Total shoe count: 2 (0m, 2w)

For those keeping track, our current total sock need is as follows:

0 pairs of men's socks, 16 pairs received

4 pairs of women's socks, 0 pairs received

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees. Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases   twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

The Needs For The Trip

I project this to be a pretty good list of the items we will be needing to make this trip successful. Can you help?


9 extra large suitcases. They need have wheels and pulling handles and be sturdy enough to make a one-way trip to Jamaica. These bags will not be coming back to Kansas City. Do you have an extra suitcase in your basement? Or come across one at a garage sale or thrift store?

70 pairs of adult athletic shoes. These shoes need to have some life left in them. They don't have to be brand new, but if you don't want shoes because you've worn them so much they have holes in them, probably no one else does either.

140 pairs of adult athletic socks, ankle length. These need to be brand new. The amount of men's vs woman's depends on the amount of shoes we receive. But we always try to give 2 pairs of brand new socks with each pair of shoes.

65 cinch style back packs. These are very light weight, flat, and easy to transport. They also work as great backpacks. Do you have some leftover from a company event? I don't mind if they are advertising a product, as long as its okay for kids. Don't have 65? Thats ok. I'll take what I can, get where I can get it.

65 boxes of 24-pack crayons. I'm hoping for seven donors. Six donor would buy 10 boxes of crayons, and one would buy 5.

65 pairs of child scissors. I'm hoping for seven donors. Six donor would buy 10 pairs, and one would buy 5.

65 packs of pencils. Six donor would buy 10 boxes of pencils, and one would buy 5.

130 pencil grippers - enough to give each child two grippers.

30 packs of blue or black ink pens. These would be broken up so each child would have a few pens.

65 rulers, 12 inches long.

65 boxes of markers, the 'fat' kind in 8 primary colors.

65 boxes of colored pencils. The kind that comes with 12 basic colors.

65 kids books. These can be purchased from Scholastic for $1 each on their monthly book orders.

65+ glue sticks. Enough for each child. More would be a bonus!

Good job / Gold Star stickers. These can often be found at the $3 bin at Target and have 1000+ stickers.

Teacher supplies - Pens in blue, black, and red inks. Classroom decorations like colorful charts, large ABC cards, bulletin board supplies, a stapler and staples, chalk (small for writing on boards and sidewalk size requested).

Classroom/Library books.

10 soccer balls. These can be purchased de-flated for easy traveling.

10 jump ropes.

Finally - the means to get all these supplies to Jamaica. In the past we have flown AirTran, and been charged $50 per suitcase as baggage fees. Southwest Airlines is purchasing AirTran. Currently I'm not sure what the baggage fee costs will be. We do have the cost of hiring a large van to get from the airport to our hotel. ($100) We also have to hire a taxi cab to get from our hotel to Brown's Town. ($50) If you'd like to help with these costs, let us know.

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees. Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases   twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061

New Year, New Trip, New School, New Needs!

Hello everyone, and welcome back to Soleful Suitcases!

I know, I know. Its been almost a year since we were last in Jamaica. Its been almost a year since I updated this blog. But, honestly, there hasn't been much to update. We got home, shared our trip, and went about our business. However, a new trip is in the works. We are headed back to Jamaica in November 2014, and we are starting to gear up for our trip.

In the past we have adopted Servite Primary in Brown's Town. While this is still a great school, we have donated to it twice, and want to share our love with another school. So, at the suggestion of Tamara, one of our lovely friends, we have decided to adopt Brown's Town Infant School. They serve roughly 60 children ages 4-6 in a pre-school type environment. They have asked us for the basics - crayons, pencils and pens, markers and colored pencils, scissors, rulers, good job/gold star stickers, classroom decorations and charts, books for the children and school library, jump ropes and soccer balls. I'd like to, with your help, make this happen. My vision includes a back pack of some kind for each child, stuffed with a book and some basic school supplies. I'd like to give the school some of the other items they are asking for. And I'd like you to help. Will you?

My thought is I post a wish list here, or maybe use something like Sign-Up Genius. I say I need 6 people to donate 10 boxes of crayons, 10 packs of pencils, etc. You get the idea. You purchased what you commit to, and somehow get it to me. A few of us get together in early November to stuff the packs and get them into suitcases. And off we go. Sounds easier than I think it will be, but I believe it is possible to complete.

Along with the school, we will continue with the original purpose of this - bringing adult athletic shoes and brand new socks to those employees of the hotel we stay at. Those people continue to work hard, day in and day out, to provide for their families, just like we all do. Help me give them a hand up. I'm already starting to collect shoes. Please make sure there is some life left in them.

As always, please feel free to 'like' our page on facebook to receive updates in your feed. Share our page with your friends and family. Or if you think your business or employer would be interested in helping out, connect us.

Share your shoes, share your love, share your world. 

If you'd like to donate to Soleful Suitcases and our upcoming trip in November 2014, there are several ways to help. You can donate your in-good-shape, still life left, adult athletic shoes. You can donate brand new adult socks. School supplies are always welcome. Shop on Amazon via the link on the right hand size so we get credit to help pay for baggage fees. Visit our GoFundMe page - http://www.gofundme.com/afj10s
www.facebook.com/solefulsuitcases   twitter @RunningWithHart
Melissa Hart  119 N. Parker St. #143 Olathe, KS 66061