The Trevecca ladies apartments recently joined forces to raise money to buy shoes for refugees in Serbia.
Trevecca alumni and current missionaries Tori Stone and Christina Corzine teamed up with Kaylee Carley, resident director of the girl’s apartments, to raise money for the cause.
Stone and Corzine have been serving as missionaries close to a year now and saw firsthand how important a pair of shoes were for refugees in Serbia. The two saw put their heads together and came up with a solution.
“This winter, we have seen people wearing sandals because they are all they have, and many have suffered from frostbite and hypothermia as a result. Shoes are essential, and the need is continuous. From weather conditions to long journeys, people are relying on shoes to keep going,” said Stone.
Carley came up with the idea to create a project as a way to raise money to buy shoes. The goal was to get each apartment to donate enough money to purchase a pair of shoes.
“We are trying to save up money quickly because of how cold it is getting there,” said Kristi Martin, resident assistant for Wise apartments.
The idea was to make a competition with each breezeway in Bush, Shingler, Redford and Wise to see who could get the most money raised. The breezeway that came up with the most money by March 15 received a catered meal of their choice along with clean room checks for a week.
“It would be senseless of us to not utilize our connection in Serbia to serve those,” said Martin.
Senior psychology major Lexi Palermo was a volunteer in Serbia last summer with Trevecca Around the Globe. She spent five days in Serbia and two weeks across eastern Europe helping refugees.
Palermo and her roommate Karinda Newton both donated 20 dollars, each paying for one pair of shoes that will go to refugees.
“I wanted to donate because I saw the need firsthand and made relationships with refugees in Serbia. I knew how much of an impact my donation would be for refugees like the ones that I came to know. We have Trevecca students serving in Serbia, and it is important for students to be aware of the severity that is the refugee crisis,” said Palermo.
Kayanne Hare, resident assistant in Bush, was looking for ways to give back and to get involved.
“The fact that there are Trevecca alum over there makes the cause seem more personal. You don’t think how important shoes are until you don’t have them. We take something like that for granted,” said Hare.
In total, the residents in the girls’ apartments were able to raise $1,000.08.
The winners of the contest were residents in Redford with donations totaling $312.08. Coming in close second were girls in Bush, who raised $290.00.
By Blake Stewart
This article originally appeared in the Trevechoes, Trevecca’s student newspaper
Media contact: Mandy Crow, mmcrow@trevecca.edu, 615-248-1695