January 20, 2026 By Carol Britton Meyer
Hingham resident Maggie Driscoll, a freshman at Tabor Academy who spent her middle school years at Derby Academy, is collecting new and used shoes to donate to Soles4Souls, a non-profit organization based in Tennessee that accepts donations consisting of new and used shoes to support individuals in need globally.
“These shoes not only go onto the feet of these individuals, but they are also used as a source of income for many, as they start their own businesses selling the shoes they receive from Soles4Souls,” Maggie told the Hingham Anchor.
Her work with this meaningful organization has deepened Maggie’s understanding of the impact shoes have. “They are not only a source of comfort and a necessity to participate in certain activities, but they also build confidence and allow individuals to express themselves in so many different ways,” she said.
Maggie’s inspiration for working with Soles4Souls was first sparked by her late grandmother, a teacher, who organized shoe drives for children in need at the start of every school year in her small town in Wisconsin.
“The impactful legacy she left behind is what drove me to apply for the Foley Citizenship Prize at my then-middle school, Derby Academy,” Maggie explained.
The Foley Prize is awarded annually to a member of the seventh-grade class at Derby who “has best exhibited the principles of kindness and respect toward others and is inspired to create positive change.” The recipient is then given the responsibility of supporting a charitable cause of their choice and spearheading a school-wide service project during their eighth-grade year.
Educating community about significance of shoes
“I was honored to be named the 2024 recipient of this prize and last year had the privilege of educating my community about the significance of shoes — subsequently gathering [thousands of] shoes to donate to Soles4Souls, and that is how this passion project was born,” Maggie explained.
Last year, as part of her Foley Prize work, Maggie raised more than $1,000 to dedicate to Hingham schoolchildren in the form of DSW gift cards, so they could purchase a desired new pair of shoes.
To help get the word out, Maggie has created numerous flyers to advertise this initiative at local businesses around town.
Her role with Soles4Souls – which recently named her a “Massachusetts ambassador” – is to educate the community about the need that exists for shoes worldwide.
Shoes of all types collected
“Given my passion for this initiative and the success I have had with shoe collections thus far, the Soles4Souls organization has rented a storage unit in Weymouth for shoe collection purposes,” Maggie explained. Shoes of all types are collected for boys, girls, men, and women, including cleats, heels, sneakers, and dance, sports, dress, and casual shoes, among others.
This storage facility is the only one of its kind in Massachusetts because it’s the only shoe drop-off location in the state that accepts more than 15 pairs of shoes at a time, which makes this service project even more special to her, according to Maggie.
Goal is to collect 10,000 pairs
“My goal is to collect 10,000 pairs of shoes in the new year with community support,” Maggie said. “If am successful in reaching it, Soles4Souls will organize a local shoe event, donating 100 new pairs of shoes to a non-profit organization in our community.”
So far, with local and Tabor community support, 1,913 pairs of shoes have been collected, and she is optimistic that the 10,000 goal will be reached.
Hingham residents and others who are interested in donating shoes can send an email to soles4ma@gmail.com. In response, a convenient pick-up or drop-off time is arranged.
Maggie is also seeking businesses and other locations that are willing to keep shoe donation bins in common areas to help facilitate shoe drop-offs.
“Currently, both Derby Academy and Tabor Academy are aiding me in reaching my goal by allowing donation bins on campus for shoe collection,” she said. “I would love to have the Hingham school system participate in this work if open to the idea. If this is something of interest, they can reach out to me at the soles4ma@gmail.com email address.”
For more information, go to https://soles4souls.org/.