SARASOTA COUNTY - Students at one Suncoast elementary school are making a difference…one shoe at a time.

Students at Tatum Ridge have been collecting shoes since the start of the new year as part of a program called Shoes For A Cure. The school's student council began the drive as a way to help those in need, and save the environment.

The donated shoes are recycled and sent to people who can use them, instead of to a landfill.

The students at Tatum Ridge are also giving to charity as well. “We've raised over $200 with our collection from January to March for Shriner's Children Hospital in Tampa, and then we're having our next weigh-in right now. And whatever we add to that we are then going to donate the entire check to the Children's Hospital in Tampa for the Shriners,” says teacher Sherri Braunstein.

According to the latest stat, the students have collected more than 1,800 pounds of shoes -- they hope to reach a ton.

They'll present a check for the money they've raised to the Shriners on June 1st at the school.