Nicolette Saraf with shoes she's collected for needy African children
NEWFANE, NY - "I've always thought of other people before myself... it's who I am I guess," said Nicolette Saraf, 17, a Junior at Newfane High School, who was recently suspended when she defied authority in the name of charitable activism.
Saraf has been collecting shoes for poor children in Africa who have none, as part of a nationwide effort which called on participants to spend Tuesday going barefoot.
"It makes you really think, like... wow this hurts... this isn't nice and this isn't pleasant. It makes you realize they have it tough and so much worse than us," Saraf told WGRZ-TV.
Taking One For The Cause:
On Monday Nicolette advised her school Principal that she would be coming to classes sans shoes the next day.
"He was not okay with it," she told 2 On Your Side, in confirming that the Principal warned her not to come to school in bare feet because doing so violated health standards, ...and that if she did so she could face suspension.
Nicolette decided to put her foot down and, defying the order given her, showed up at school without shoes anyway.
"That's what an activist does. No matter what someone says, you stand up for what you believe in," she said.
These Little Piggies Sent Home:
She was promptly pulled from her first period class suspended from school for three days.
"It doesn't change my mind, or make me think any different...I'm proud of what I did," she said.
Newfane's Superintendent of Schools, Christine Tibbets, told 2 On Your Side that she was unavailable to speak on camera, but sent the following statement:
"The Newfane School community is immensely proud of Nicolette and her desire to help children in Africa with a shoe drive. Her efforts truly represent what's great about our youth today. Our only concern was that Nicolette pursued a project called "One Day Without Shoes" to highlight her shoe drive, which is a direct violation of our health and safety codes. We were hoping that Nicolette would have adopted some of the many options that were provided to her so that she could accomplish her goals without endangering herself or others."
Digging In Her Heels:
Though her suspension was technically over by Friday, Nicollette did not return to school because she had vowed to remain barefoot until the end of her shoe drive, which will conclude in another week.
"My mom thought it would be better if I didn't get into further trouble," she said.
"I'm proud of her for her causes and I think this is a wonderful thing that she wants to help the children over there," said Bonnie Wiedenbeck, Nicolette's mother. "But I'm not very happy that she got herself suspended and wish she would put her shoes back on and go back to school."
At the same time, though, Wiednebeck believes her daughter at age 17, has to stand on her own two feet,..and walk her own path, understanding the consequences which may come with doing so.
Click on the video player to watch the story from 2 On Your Side Reporter Dave McKinley and Photojournalist Norm Fisher from Eden.
If you would like to donate used shoes, contact Nicolette Saraf through facebook.
Click here to read Dave McKinley's blog.
WGRZ-TV, wgrz.com