Socktober Sock Drive and How You Can Help

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Did you know that socks are one of the least donated items to shelters? SOCKTOBER is celebrated in October to bring awareness to this issue and encourage people to give. Columbus Moms Blog is teaming up with our friends from Goldfish Swim School for a sock drive and here’s how you can help.

Sock DriveWhat Can YOU Do To Help?

The concept is simple…. collect new or gently used socks and drop them off in the designated box at either Goldfish Swim School location here in Columbus during their normal business hours from October 1-October 31, 2017.

Goldfish Swim School Dublin: 6175 Shamrock Ct. Suite G, Dublin, OH 43016

Goldfish Swim School Westerville: 765 Brooksedge Blvd, Westerville, OH 43081 

Visit our Facebook pages for updates: Goldfish Swim School-Dublin, Goldfish Swim School-Westerville and Columbus Moms Blog

Start a Sock Drive and deliver these to Goldfish Swim School! Think about the number of socks you could collect if you joined forces with your neighborhood, community, school, a group you are involved with, friends and family.

Where Will the Socks Go That Are Collected?

The socks are being donated to Open Shelter here in Columbus. Open Shelter provides, directly or by referral, emergency shelter and assistance for homeless and marginally housed persons in Central Ohio, especially the most vulnerable among them; and to provide directly or by referral, coordinated, supportive services, and transitional and/or permanent housing, enabling homeless and marginally housed persons to achieve maximum participation in the community. 

Open Shelter is in most need of ADULT socks, but children’s socks are being collected as well. 

How Can You Get Your Children Involved?

We are commonly asked by our readers about ways children can get involved in service projects or giving to others. Take your child(ren) to the store and let them pick up the socks they’d like to donate or have them help look through the sock drawers for gently used socks that no longer fit. Then, have them place the socks in the collection container at either Goldfish location. Use the hashtag #SocktoberGSSandCMB and allow them to follow along with the collection process.  

Background Behind the Socktober Movement

Homelessness is an epidemic in the United States. Over a half a million people are living on the streets and many of them are children. Kid President and SoulPancake have partnered together to bring awareness about this issue and urge people around the world to donate socks this October. Their goal is to make this year even more successful than last year. They are hoping to get 2 million people to participate. Will you be one of them?

Learn the story behind how Socktober became a movement in 2011: Socktober

SocktoberMust See Video

No one says it better than the Kid President himself. Kid President has such an infectious personality that it really causes you to stop and think about his message. These videos are quick and entertaining.

Watch this great video from Kid President introducing Socktober: Hello Internet! It’s #Socktober! Love, Kid President

If you can’t get enough of Kid President, here’s another Socktober video: Kid President! How Do You Socktober?

Great Books For Children about Doing Kind Deeds For Others

If you are looking for a wonderful book to teach children more about the straightforward things they can do to spread kindness, then consider reading Ordinary Mary’s Extraordinary Deed by Emily Pearson.

This book is the gateway to a deep discussion with children about how even the simplest gestures can make others feel so good that they, in turn, are more likely to pass on love and kindness. It’s a boomerang effect! Paying it forward, participating in random acts of kindness and doing kind things for others makes everyone feel good!

Another book, Do Nice, Be Kind, Spread Happy: Join the Kindness Club gives lots of suggestions for ways to spread joy to others.


Hopefully, this message has resonated with you and you are willing to help us this “Socktober” by bringing new or gently used socks to Goldfish Swim School from October 1-October 31, 2017.  Spread the word and make a difference!

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Amy Onifer
Amy is an "on the go momma" to two spunky and fun loving kids (ages 9 & 8). She came to Columbus to pursue a career in elementary education and decided this was home. She’s an avid traveler, yet can’t master the art of packing. Her philosophy is bring it all because you don’t know if you’re going to need it. If you ever decide to take a trip with her, don’t worry about bringing a camera because she’ll take enough photos of the experience that it will likely crash your hard drive. Before kids, you could find everything neatly organized and straight vacuum lines in her carpet, but these days she's not bothered with worrying about the small stuff. You can catch her belting out her favorite song, “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” and using her two left feet to bust a move with her family during their frequent impromptu dance parties. She loves living in such a family-friendly city!