After converting to Islam, South Londoner Moosa Nsubuga decided to dedicate his life towards the morals of charity and giving back to the community. Starting a small project on the side, Moosa began to give away high-quality shoes and trainers to at-risk teenagers and the homeless in his community, but after noticing that the quality of donations coming in were not as high quality as he thought was appropriate, Moosa began to change his approach to charity.
Launching Resole, Moosa now instead hands out new and designer trainers to at-risk youth of gang violence, drug abuse, and homelessness. Handing out trainers from brands such as Gucci, Adidas, and Nike, Moosa has completely changed his mentality on how to give back to the community at large. Now receiving around 150 to 120 pairs a month from donations, Moosa continues to donate hundreds of designer shoes to the homeless and at-risk youth a month.
Speaking to the Metro, Moosa stated:
Faith was a strong personal reason for wanting to give back but also being able to get others involved from the culture that raised me. Some homeless people we have met are barefoot because they have had their shoes stolen at night while they sleep. One guy was without shoes for two weeks and just had flipflops…we gave him a pair of Nike Air VaporMax valued at £185. He couldn’t believe we were just giving it out for free and was so grateful.”
After the fire of Grenfell Towers, Moosa felt especially compelled to help out the at-risk community in London in any way possible. Originally starting off as a side project in his base in South London, Moosa’s project has now spread across the city because of his determination to help as many people as possible.
Resole now does two to three drop-offs per week, distributing about 170 pairs of designer shoes to the homeless. This comes to a value of around £14,450 a month that Moosa gives towards those less fortunate. Hoping to expand to other parts of the UK, Moosa takes pride in doing work that not only helps those in physical need, but also helps those gain confidence, stating:
It gives you great joy to see the self-esteem that a pair of new sneakers can bring to a person.”
With a goal of someday operating Resole as a full-time project, Moosa is now planning a 2020 UK tour, from Portsmouth to Liverpool on a five-city journey that will see them both collecting and distributing new trainers to those in need. As winter approaches, it becomes more important than ever to help support and be inspired by the selfless acts of people like Moosa, who puts some of Islam’s most beautiful tenants into action.
