Deltona teen Olivia Russo-Hood wants to change the world, one step at a time. During the last three years, the 14-year-old Atlanta, Georgia, native collected more than 22,000 pairs of shoes that may have otherwise ended up in the landfill. The shoe drive is part of Olivia’s charity, Save The Earth Projects (STEP), which she created four years ago following a flood that destroyed her neighborhood.

The 2009 FEMA-declared disaster left Olivia and her family homeless and stuck removing waterlogged memories and possessions from their home. “It left me with a pain in my heart,” Olivia said. It was while watching the outpouring of support from strangers who helped clean up her neighborhood, as well as donated clothing, food and gift cards, that Olivia felt an overwhelming need to help others. “They filled that gap I felt in my heart,” she said. “It made me feel so special.”

After discussing her plans with her mom, Denise Russo, Olivia founded STEP in November 2012. She started by making natural birdfeeders—peanut butter on pinecones—but knew she wanted to do more. Enter a partnership with Shoebox Recycling, whose members helped Olivia create Leave a GOOD Footprint, STEP’s cornerstone project.

After learning that 300 million pounds of shoes end up in American landfills annually and those shoes take, on average, 100 years to decompose, Olivia wanted to help both the earth and people without footwear. “The project was to get everyone to look in their closets and find shoes they didn’t wear anymore,” she said. After finding an organization willing to pay between 50 cents and $1 per pound of shoes, Olivia partnered with the Four Townes YMCA to donate the money toward the purchase of outdoor lighting for their sport fields. With an original goal of collecting 100 pairs of shoes by Christmas 2012, STEP surpassed their expectations by 1,400 pairs of shoes, allowing them to purchase the lights as well as provide for several YMCA scholarships.

That project inspired Olivia’s mentor, Michelle King, to nominate her for the Gloria Barron Prize for Young Heroes, a national award given to youths making a positive difference for the planet and humanity. Barron said the purpose of the prize was “to shine the spotlight on these amazing young people so that their stories will inspire others.” Olivia was named one of 10 honorees for the 2015 prize. “I felt so honored and shocked,” she said. “I couldn’t have done it alone. I did this with the help of others.” That humble attitude may come from Olivia’s mom, who described herself as awestruck watching her daughter teach others about social entrepreneurship and philanthropy. “Olivia has the big vision to make a difference in the world,” Denise Russo said. “That is the whole point of this.”

Olivia, who has used her allowance and birthday money to purchase her business licenses, is working on her non-profit status as well as future projects. She and her brother Vincent, 11, are collaborating on STEP Up to the Plate to inspire young people to grow healthy food that they’ll also try. The project will be a community garden where 50 percent of the harvest will be donated to local food banks and the other half kept by the gardeners. They are currently looking for a location for the project. “In the world we live in today, we don’t know what is in our food,” Olivia said. “This will open up their taste buds, because they will have grown it and will not be afraid of it.”

Her charitable spirit has won her yet further recognition, as she has also been awarded a $1,000 scholarship through Kohl’s Cares and a letter from President Barrack Obama with the Prudential Spirit of Community Award. Additionally, Olivia was one of eight children recently appointed to a national community service youth advisory board.

As for the shoes, Olivia continues to collect gently used pairs. She has used the money to donate to eight local charities and hopes to expand the project. Shoes can be dropped off at the Four Townes YMCA in Deltona and at the Office Depot on Saxon Avenue in Orange City. For more information, visit Save The Earth Projects on Facebook or SaveTheEarthProjects.com.