Imagine trying to restore electric lines in a disaster-devastated area without the equipment linemen count on every day. In particular, imagine trying to shimmy up damaged power poles without those familiar boots equipped with steel shanks. That situation is a reality for linemen in Haiti, who are still struggling to repair electric lines that were damaged in the January 2010 earthquake. 

After spending three weeks in the island nation to help the locals make repairs and teach them how to climb poles, two Central Virginia Electric Co-op linemen have started an effort to help Haiti’s electric crews. While there, Byron Sandridge and Chris Allen noticed that lineworkers performed tasks while wearing soft-soled or street shoes. They never complained and they were willing to soldier on, but their feet must have been killing them,” Allen said.

Here in the U.S., a new pair of boots can set a lineman back $250, making them an impossible dream for a worker in an impoverished country like Haiti. But Sandridge and Allen hit on a solution. They encouraged co-ops in their region to collect new and used boots, which they ship to their Haitian counterparts.

They have already sent dozens of pairs of boots, but there is a need for hundreds more. If your co-op would like to help their effort by donated new or used steel shank boots (or other equipment) to lineworkers in Haiti and other countries, you can ship them to Boots for Haiti, NRECA International Foundation, 4301 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22203.