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CMS Student Collecting 500 Pairs of Used Shoes to Create Playground Equipment

Max Lindzon, a 13-year-old 8th grader at Coronado Middle School, is shown with Rabbi Eli Fradkin of the Chabad of Coronado, with shoes he has collected as a part of his Mitzvah Project for his Bar Mitzvah.

A Bar Mitzvah is a Jewish ceremony which documents and celebrates the fact that a male child is now old enough to take his place as an adult in the Jewish community and participate in rituals that honor God's commandments. Max's Bar Mitzvah will be held on 9/22/12 at the Coronado Golf Course and the service will be conducted by Rabbi Eli of the Chabad of Coronado. Max is doing a "Mitzvah Project" or a good deed as a part of his Bar Mitzvah.

The idea behind a "Mitzvah Project" is to show teens who are becoming adults that they can make an impact on the world by performing good deeds. Max decided to hold a "Re-Use a Shoe Drive" in association with the Nike corporation as his "Mitzvah Project". Max is collecting shoes with rubber soles that can be recycled and turned into playground equipment for underprivileged children for his "Re-Use a Shoe Drive.

Max selected this project because he loves sports and loved going to playgrounds as a young child. He still loves taking his 4 and 5-year-old cousins to the playground so that they can run around, swing and play catch. Max thought the recycling aspect of this project fit nicely with his torah portion which is about forgiveness and second chances.

Max's goal is to collect 500 pairs of shoes by October 2, 2012.

Max has been going door-to-door asking for used shoes to accomplish this goal. Coronado Middle School has assisted Max in his "Mitzvah Project" by agreeing to allow him to place a donation box in the school office and by reminding his classmates to bring in used shoes for the shoe drive on its daily announcements.

Please help Max reach his goal of 500 pairs of shoes. Be sure to donate shoes with rubber soles. A donation box is located in the Coronado Middle School office located at 550 F Avenue.

Submitted article.

Tags: community, people, schools

9 members like this

Staff Comment by Kellee Hearther on September 11, 2012 at 2:01pm: Way to go Max! I hope your preparation for the Bar Mitzvah is going well. You have a wonderful teacher in Rabbi Fradkin and I'm sure your celebration will be wonderful!

Comment by Patti Peterson on September 17, 2012 at 9:14am: What a great idea, Max! Best of luck to you.

Comment by Susan Suchy on September 17, 2012 at 9:15am: So donated shoes don't have to be in wearable condition? If shoe rubber is what is being recycled here?

Great project, good luck Max!

Comment by eCoronado on September 17, 2012 at 9:18am: Susan, as we understand, it's the shoe rubber that they need most.

Comment by Nanette on September 17, 2012 at 10:09am: Great idea! Good luck with your project. We sure will take sone tennis shoes to you. Congratulations!!!!

Comment by Ruthee Goldkorn on September 18, 2012 at 7:06am: Dear Max and Rabbi,

L'Shana Tova.

Please make sure this playground is for everyone. There are so few fully accessible and usable playgrounds for kids with disAbilities and as a parent with disAbility, when she was small, the only playground

I could take my daughter Sasha to was McDonalds. Although she is able bodied and gre uo toi be an athlete, I was not going to have her playing whre I could not get to her if she fell or there was trouble with another kid. So, please do not use this fantastic project to make a playground with toys and equipment only some children can use.

Thank You,

Ruthee Goldkorn