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Vol. LXI, No. 41
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Wednesday, October 10, 2007
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Vol. LXI, No. 41
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Wednesday, October 10, 2007
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When Princeton resident and Princeton High School senior Alex Bozich heard about Nike’s pledge to recycle old athletic shoes and turn them into new surfaces for five basketball courts in New Orleans, he jumped at the chance to contribute.
This month, Mr. Bozich will be collecting worn out athletic shoes and sneakers, of any brand or style, for Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe program.
According to the company, Reuse-A-Shoe, collects and recycles about 1.5 million post-consumer and defective shoes every year. Reground material can be re-used as carpet padding, equestrian tracks or, in the case of rubber, basketball courts and other sport surfaces.
Mr. Bozich learned of the project from a phone conversation between his mother Amy Bozich and her sister Laurie Beja, Nike’s Vice President and General Manager of USA Retail in Portland, Oregon. The family connection is proving useful for the project.
“Because of Hurricane Katrina, schools in New Orleans don’t have the facilities we take for granted here in Princeton,” he said. “I figured I could do something to help.”
Pitcher and first baseman for the PHS baseball team and tight end on the football team, Mr. Bozich said that he realized the importance of sport for the city’s morale after watching the first Saints game last year. “The NFL comeback had such a great impact on New Orleans.”
He proposed the idea to Princeton High School administrator Angela Siso, supervisor of student activities, who helped his plans take shape by securing the necessary permissions. “I’ve known Alex through all the years he has been at the high school and was happy to help him get this off the ground. He should be proud of his efforts.”
Collection bins were placed in front of the high school’s main office, as well as in front of the attendance office.
Nike, which has been attempting to “green” its operations since 1993 when it introduced a new environmental action team, supplied project guidelines and brochures. In an attempt to minimize the environmental impact of its products, Nike came up with the idea of recycling shoe manufacturing waste, defective shoes, and worn-out sneakers.
Waste from the manufacturing process — mostly cured rubber used in making soles — is being “reground” to make more soles instead of ending up as landfill.
So far Mr. Bozich has gathered several boxes of potential basketball surface.
Besides placing collection bins in the high school, Mr. Bozich has put them in the St. Paul Church and in the Cranbury Elementary School.
He has approached the principals of both West Windsor Plainsboro North and West Windsor Plainsboro South in an effort to expand the project, which he also hopes to expand to the John Witherspoon Middle School.
“It’s great that Alex has reached out to other schools,” said Ms. Siso. “We are delighted that he has undertaken this project and shown so much enthusiasm and maturity in securing advertising and monitoring the collection every day.”
At home, Mr. Bozich’s mother, Amy, has been the mainstay of the operation, he said, taking phone calls and relaying messages.
There are still a few kinks being worked out, however. How to get the shoes to Nike, for example. “This is a pilot project from Nike’s perspective,” said Ms. Bozich. “We are working on the next step of the process with the possibility of taking them to a local Nike outlet for shipping.”
“Once we get more shoes, we will arrange to get them to Nike,” said Mr. Bozich obviously undaunted by the prospect.
Amy Bozich said that she was not surprised by her son’s efforts. He has worked for church-related charities and for the March of Dimes.
For more information, call (609) 860-6664.