Student makes a positive impact
By Hector Trujillo
The worst global pandemic in a century has not deterred some from making a positive impact in people’s lives. A case in point is Scripps Ranch High School (SRHS) student Spencer Mountain, who took it upon herself to bring a measure of joy to those struggling by joining forces with the Got Sneakers recycling organization to help the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
“The best thing about being involved in something like this was realizing that I could support a variety of people in need, and all from home,” Spencer said.
A sophomore at SRHS, Spencer was looking for a community service project and wanted to do something to support the fight against juvenile diabetes, taking into account that her father, Rod Mountain, suffers from the same condition. Being an avid runner and soccer player, which includes playing JV soccer and running track for her high school, Spencer was planning to do a series of 5k fun runs to raise money – that was until COVID-19 came along.
“She started Googling and looking for other ways to fundraise and came across Got Sneakers,” said Spencer’s mother Mare Mountain. “It was a perfect fit because collecting sneakers, tennis shoes and cleats tied into her participation in soccer. It was also a way of helping two great causes at once.”
Spencer was able to collect shoes from more than 150 people during the drive which lasted the entire month of October and accounted for more than 1,000 pairs of sneakers.
“Our garage quickly filled with bags and boxes of sneakers, and Got Sneakers sent us big collection bags with prepaid postage,” Mare said. “We offered contactless pickup of the shoes from people’s front porches and the whole community really came together to help us with this fundraiser. I was really proud of Spencer.”
This endeavor did not rely solely on word of mouth, but was also promoted though postings on the Scripps Ranch Soccer Club Facebook page, the St. Gregory the Great Catholic Church Facebook page and the Scripps Ranch Information Exchange and Buy Nothing Facebook pages. The donated shoes were picked up from every part of the community, a community that Spencer and her family know quite well, having lived in the Scripps Ranch area for 10 years.
“I plan to do this every year. I will also look for other ways to support the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation,” Spencer said. “Hopefully, fun runs will be able to start up again soon.”
Got Sneakers will send the shoes to many persons living in impoverished countries.