Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Clubfoot Files: Donating Used Braces

(Her first pair and the pair she wears now - such a difference!)

Today I finally got around to doing something I've been wanting to do for a long time - I donated Harper's first pair of Mitchell boots!  Harper is in her third pair right now, so it was high time for me to do this.


As I dug them out of her closet, I was swept with nostalgia.  They are so tiny!!  These were the first shoes she ever wore.  I looked at these things 23 hours a day for three straight months as they held my tiny baby's feet in place.  They are marked up with a rainbow of Sharpie colors as we figured out where to buckle them as she grew and they stretched out. 


I wanted to keep them.  Those shoes held a lot of frustration, and healing, and emotions.  

But that is exactly why I needed to donate them.  Some other child would have the opportunity to receive the gift of healing, of hope.  We had the resources to see the best doctors, buy the shoes that provided endless help; some parents do not.  Clubfoot treatment is not cheap, not in America, and not in the rest of the world.  But by donating her brace, we could make it that much easier for another baby, another family. 


There are so many wonderful organizations out there who take these types of donations.  I didn't know how to choose!  I know there are so many children here in America and around the world needing care.  In the end, I decided on Miraclefeet, as they are a solid organization that is very active in the clubfoot community.  Go here to donate a pair of your own.  I just stuck mine in a padded mailer and dropped it in the mail.


Through this simple act, we passed on the gift of straight, functioning, pain-free feet.  It felt good.


If you are in the market to donate used shoes, check out these organizations here who can take them:
And, gratuitous Harper pic:


5 comments:

  1. Awwww... this is so great that you are able to pass on the love. And what a sweet, beautiful girl you have. Love her.

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  2. So glad you're able to donate them- that is awesome!! Awwwww Harper you are so cute :)

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  3. Good for you! That's the very best way to honor the nostalgia. You are awesome, Claire!

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  4. What a beautiful heart you have! And i LOVE the pic of Harper. :)

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  5. Thank you for sharing this. Don't stop helping and motivating people to help as well.

    http://www.boex.org/

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Your comments make me happy!

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