June 25, 2007 -- Press Release: Triathletes For Africa, a non-profit charity that will collect used running shoes, will kick off it's first season of accepting donations on July 15th at The BMW Chattanooga Waterfront Triathlon. The charity was started by Nashville, TN based triathlete Chad Nikazy.
"I wanted to find a way to connect my passion for triathlon with my heart for Africa," said Chad Nikazy. "One Sunday during my weekly long run the idea popped into my head."
That idea is collecting the used running shoes that typically pile up in triathletes closets waiting to become yard mowing shoes and shipping them to those in need of good footwear in impoverished areas in Africa. Nikazy had connections with another Nashville area ministry called New Seed of Hope. Together with New Seed of Hope's director, Kraig McNutt, Nikazy and a few triathlete buddies came up with the plan to send the first shipment of shoes to the Kibera slum in Nairobi, Kenya where more than one million of the poorest people on earth all live in one square mile. New Seed of Hope has an office there that will distribute the shoes to those with the greatest need. Children's sizes will go to The Tenderfeet Orphanage with larger children's sizes going to another local school in Kibera.
"Some of the best ideas are simple ones," said Kraig McNutt, the visionary behind New Seed of Hope. "Tens of thousands of people living in Kibera can not afford to buy shoes. It's not just an economic issue, it's a health issue. Disease spreads more rapidly through bare feet."
Triathletes for Africa doesn't plan to stop there. After launching the program in the southeast with collections at five Team Magic, Inc organized races and several drop off centers in the Nashville area, Nikazy plans to take the program nationwide. The program will expand to accept monetary donations as well in order to help with the expensive shipping costs overseas. Their plan is to eventually be sending shoes and money to many countries in need in Africa and around the world. Orphanages, child soldier rehabilitation centers, and refugee camps are the first priority for the charity. There are currently more than 10 million orphans in Africa. There are more than 9 million children living as refugees far away from their homes. There are still hundreds of thousands of children being used as child soldiers.
"The triathlon community needs a charity to wrap it's arms around," said Nikazy. "The demographics show that triathletes, for the most part, are high income earners. We need to focus our efforts and intensity on something besides setting personal bests at each race.
Going fast is great, but changing lives is what we're here for. I'm hoping to connect with USAT to make this program triathlon's way of reaching out."
Contact Triathletes for Africa at www.triforafrica.com. For more on New Seed of Hope visit www.newseedofhope.com.