Donation to Malawi orphanage and Sri Lanka church

Staff from law firm Irwin Mitchell have raided their wardrobes to donate almost 800 pairs of shoes to charities in Sri Lanka and Malawi.

Employees at the firm's clubbed together to donate their unwanted shoes to the charities, gathering a total of 792 pairs to donate to an orphanage in Malawi and a church in Sri Lanka.

News of the appeal also spread to the friends and family of Irwin Mitchell staff, including Marion Elliott, a child minder from Surrey, who contributed approximately 150 pairs to the appeal. 

Nicola Perrott, solicitor in the brain injury team at Irwin Mitchell in Leeds, said: "We are overwhelmed by the number of shoes that were donated to the appeal and they will make a real difference to the lives of hundreds of disadvantaged children.

"We would like to thank everyone at the firm and their friends and family who contributed to the appeal for their generosity, and are also extremely grateful for the help and support of 'Pack and Send', a local courier company who absorbed the extra costs when there were problems with the initial delivery."

Approximately 400 pairs of the shoes were donated to Open Arms Malawi, an orphanage that cares for children who have lost their parents to the AIDS virus.

The home provides shelter, food, education and medical care for the children, with the aim of developing them so that they can return to their original communities in the future.

Neville Bevis, Manager of Open Arms Malawi, said: "Irwin Mitchell’s donation was wonderful and made the children extremely happy. We are very grateful for their efforts and support.

"The home is entirely dependent on donations to maintain the service we provide and we are always grateful to anybody who can contribute, however large or small their donation."