In 2022 a grass roots campaign to collect and distribute socks to the homeless was initiated by central Ohioan Joy McLemore, who is also known as "The Sock Lady". What made her effort different from other sock drives was not restricting donations to only "new" socks. As long as they are clean, they are both eligible and sought after.
The City of Worthington agreed to have collection bins placed at the fire station, senior center, and community center, in partnership with the Sock Lady's program. McLemore teamed up with the Empathy Experiment to assure delivery of the collected socks to the homeless. She got the idea after reading about how prized socks are to people who have none.
McLemore also recruited another Columbus grandmother, Lindalee Brownstein, to assist her in managing the program. They credit the name of their endeavor to the founder of the Salvation Army, who said you cannot warm people's hearts if you have an empty stomach and cold feet.
The Sock Lady was featured in a Columbus Dispatch article in December of 2022. To read more, go to https://www.dispatch.com/story/lifestyle/columns/2022/12/13/columbus-sock-drive-no-cold-feet-makes-impact-throughout-the-city/69708729007/.