Hawthorn Woods Jumps on ‘Reuse-A-Shoe’ Bandwagon

While strolling past booths selling fresh fruit, vegetables, and plastic food storage containers at the Hawthorn Woods farmers market Friday, residents stopped to inquire about a box filled with old sneakers.

The box is part of the village’s recent collaboration with the Solid Waste Agency of Lake County’s (SWALCO) “Reuse-A-Shoe” program.

Hawthorn Woods Recreation Coordinator Kelly Carlson introduced the program to the village in an effort to get the community to be more ‘green’ conscious.

“It makes everybody feel good,” she said. “It seemed like kind of a way to allow our community to give back.”

Collecting and transporting athletic shoes, SWALCO either donates them to Share Your Soles, a Chicago-based nonprofit organization, or processes and recycles them to become “Nike grind.” This material is ground down in Nike’s facility to create sports surfaces like playgrounds, basketball courts, or running tracks.

The program, a cooperative venture with Nike, was introduced to Lake County more than eight years ago. Walter Willis, executive director for SWALCO, said Hawthorn Woods is the most recent village in Lake County to participate in the program. Partnerships between communities have continued to grow in Lake County, increasing 25 percent last year, from 80 to 100.

“It grows, it keeps growing, keeps increasing too the more that we get other groups to help us,” said Willis.

Village officials said this recent community service project is the first of many Hawthorn Woods plans to participate in.

“We’re exploring our options to see what we can do next,” said Carlson.

Another project being discussed for the fall by the village environmental committee is “Adopt-A-Highway,” a roadside clean up program.

However, Carlson said currently the village’s main focus is on the “Reuse-A-Shoe” program.

“Whether we get one pair or a thousand, I would just like to see people do their part and embrace the project,” she said. “Then we’ll see where we’re at.”

Shoes can be donated at village summer events, such as the farmers market, car show, and concerts throughout August at Community Park, 42 Park View Lane.