MASK chapel students collect shoes for Syrian refugees

Janel Shoun-Smith | 09/22/2015

With the news full of stories of the current wave of refugees spreading throughout Europe, Lipscomb University’s multicultural students decided it was time to do something to help the thousands of men and women facing such an arduous journey.

During 10 days in September, the students collected shoes to send to Syrian refugees in Europe. On Friday, Sept. 18, the students packed up 126 pairs of shoes for the refugees.

“In our MASK (Multicultural Awareness Skills and Knowledge) chapel, we have been talking about the various waves of refugees, especially children, throughout history, including the Operation Peter Pan flight from Cuba, the U.S. immigration crisis of Latin American children last year and the current wave of Syrian refugees,” said Lisa Steele, assistant dean of intercultural development. “We discussed what we may have learned from the past and how we could help. We wanted to do something tangible.”

Through flyers, emails and announcements in the MASK chapel, regularly attended by almost 150 people, students collected piles of shoes that were sent Monday to be shipped to Europe by Nashville’s Ethos Church, which is collecting various other items to ship over.

Jocelyne Lopez, a MASK attendee and student worker in the Office of Intercultural Development, said she is happy with the response they got from students, who are still bringing in shoes for the collection.

“I love missions. I don’t think you actually have to go over there to do good,” she said. “It’s amazing that we can collect the items they need right here. This was a wonderful way to show that we care about them.”