Extra T-Shirts? Do something GOOD with them!
Submitted by Cara Cherry, Public Relations
Do you have a drawer dedicated entirely to T-shirts? I know I do. Some are too big, some are too small, some have been worn, and some are barely worn? Every once in a while I look in that drawer and turn one of those leftover t-shirts into a cleaning rag or paint smock for my daughter.
Well that drawer is full again and this time I’m donating those shirts to a worthy cause. I’m sending them to 1 Million Shirts. This great cause created was by IWearYourShirt.com founder, Jason Sadler to gather a shirt load of shirts and send them to Africa.
The Stahls’ ID Direct marketing department creates lots of samples to show off our amazing line of heat transfer materials. These shirts have never been worn – only displayed at trade shows – and feature fun one of a kind designs. We’ve gathered more than 40 extra shirts and will be sending them to 1 Million Shirts to help support their cause.
Want to help? It’s easy! Just gather up some clean, gently used T-shirts in any size or color. Put them in a box or an envelope with one dollar to help cover the cost of shipping the shirts to Africa.
Mail to:
HELP International
“1,000,000 Shirts”
629 SW 14th
Loveland, CO 80537
Visit 1 Million Shirts for more detailed information on how to package your shirts.
Hi,
I’m wondering if you’ve been following the huge debate that is raging over this idea. Most people in Africa don’t need shirts. The costs of sending them over could be much better used towards other types of programs and projects, managed via organizations working on the ground in health, education, or other types of programs that have been designed by people working on the ground who know what their needs are. For example, Marieme Jamme has this to say about the idea:
You can read Marieme’s full post here about why this is a bad idea. http://mariemejamme.com/blog/another-bad-aid-idea-for-africa/
A post about other alternative ideas for helping can be found here: http://texasinafrica.blogspot.com/2010/04/some-alternative-ideas-to-donating-t.html
Other posts can be found here, on a blog whose name really hits the nail on the head: Good Intentions are Not Enough: http://informationincontext.typepad.com/good_intentions_are_not_e/2010/04/what-aid-workers-think-of-the-1-million-shirts-campaign.html
Appreciate your feedback. I’m keeping in touch with the program organizers – they are listening to the debate and looking for some solutions. I’ll continue to monitor and see how I can help them come to a good outcome.