Shoes That Fit Blog by category: Children

Happy Holidays from the Shoes That Fit staff! As this year comes to an end, we wanted to say Thank You to all our volunteers, donors & school liaisons for their unwavering support of our mission to provide new shoes to children in need who wouldn't otherwise have them. Your support allows these deserving children to attend school in comfort and with dignity. As we head into 2012, we look forward to our 20 Year Anniversary which we will celebrate in April & to the donation of our 1 Millionth pair of shoes! We hope you'll continue to rally around the important work being done through our programs across the U.S. and look forward to another exciting year at Shoes That Fit!
 
Roni, Michelle, Lee and Barbara

Shoes That Fit, Nordstrom and New Balance have partnered once again to provide  nearly 12,000 children in need with new shoes this holiday season! Nordstrom’s Holiday Giving Tree Program, which takes place across the U.S. from November 25 through December 24 displays a holiday tree in 117 Nordstrom stores with tags you can purchase for $20. Each tag purchased represents a deserving child in your community who will receive a brand new pair of New Balance athletic shoes. So while you're out shopping this holiday season, pick a gift tag from the Giving Tree at your local Nordstrom & bring joy to a deserving child in need!

Last year, you made it possible for Anthony & more than 119,000 children like him to start school with his head held high. Here is what he wrote after receiving his new shoes:
    "...To you people it may be nothing but to me it is a blessing. For me a new pair of shoes to come by are really hard. I'm almost dirt poor and I look all bumish but with these new shoes I won't look that bad anymore...God bless you people for throwing some joy into my life-you people are too kind!
                                                                                 Sincerely, Anthony"
There are thousands of children all across the country just like Anthony. They are the kids in the back of the room whose feet hurt so much that they can't concentrate, so worried about what their peers will think, they don't even participate in recess. 
We are depending on you to help children like Anthony take the first step to success in school with brand new Shoes That Fit. And it's so easy to do! Donate online now, mail your check or money order or consider becoming a Sole Mate & make automatic monthly donations of as little as $10 a month to Shoes That Fit. You'll receive an acknowledgement for your tax-deductible gift and a thank you note from a child your gift has helped. As Anthony wrote, "Take care of yourselves and once again, thank you!"  

Swing into spring by helping a child in need
 
With the official start of Spring just a few days away, Shoes That Fit is off and running with our annual Spring for Shoes campaign in the Claremont Village, CA! Campaign runs from: March 25 –April 10, 2011. Under the leadership of Joan Bunte, owner of Stamp Your Heart Out, and the generosity of merchants throughout downtown Claremont, 200 local school children in need will be treated to new athletic shoes, socks and other goodies. Participation is as easy as 1, 2, 3!
 

1. You choose an empty basket with a child’s name, age and shoe size from any participating merchant
2. Fill the basket with a new pair of shoes, socks and treats
3. Return the basket to the store you picked it up from

 
And since you’ll already be in The Village picking up your Shoes That Fit basket to help a child in need feel great returning to school from spring break, hop around to some of the other participating merchants and pick up a few springtime goodies for yourself, too!
 
For more information or a complete list of participating merchants, contact Joan Bunte at Stamp Your Heart Out 909-621-4363
 

Happy New Year Everyone! 2010 was a challenging year for many families across the country but your gifts and support through volunteerism have helped children start the new year on the right foot and for that, we say Thank You!
 
There is much work ahead in 2011 but we know that with your support, we will continue to help children in need attend school in comfort and with dignity. We are also very excited about our upcoming 20 year anniversary and donation of 1 million pairs of shoes in 2012. We hope you'll join us in celebrating these milestones at The Sneaker Ball! Since kids say it best, we thought we'd share with you some Thank You letters written by children helped through Shoes That Fit in 2010:
 
Thanks for giving us shoes...I hope you guys keep helping people that can't afford this stuff. Thanks for giving poor people stuff they really need. God bless you. You guys rock! -Juan
 
Thank you for the shoes. Why did you make the organization? I'm sure you'll help many kids. Nice work! -Adrian
 
First off I would like to say thank you so much for the free shoes. To you people it maybe nothing but to me this is a blessing. For me a new pair of shoes to come by are extremly difficult. Im almost dirt poor and I look all bumish but with these new shoes I wont look that bad anymore! I really love the shoes you sent me and im gonna make them last as long as possible! God bless you people for throwing some joy into my life you people are too kind! Take care of yourselfs and once again thank you! Sincerely, Anthony

 
As we head into this holiday season, Shoes That Fit is thankful for all of our wonderful contributors and volunteers! Thousands of children across the country are given hope through the simple gift of a new pair of shoes and YOU make that possible.
 
There are many easy ways you can continue to help kids in need while preparing for the holidays. Here are just a few ideas to get you started…
 
·       While shopping at ANY Nordstrom store across the U.S., pick a gift tag from the “Giving Tree” to help a local child receive a new pair of New Balance shoes.
 
·       For each $50 donation in honor of someone, we will send one plain wrapped empty shoe box to your loved one with a note from you explaining that the box is empty because shoes were given to a child in need in their name. Also included will be a thank you note we received from a child helped by Shoes That Fit.
 
·        Your little one will be thrilled with the story of “Flip Flop Flo, the Know-It-All” written by Gloria Barone Rosanio. Sales of this wonderful children’s book benefit Shoes That Fit!
 
·       Vons & Safeway grocery stores throughout California now carry Causes Gift Cards! This card allows you to give the gift of giving; whomever you give them to can make a donation to any non-profit in the U.S. including Shoes That Fit! (purchase of the gift card is tax deductible).
 
·       Instead of the usual workplace gift exchange or “secret Santa”, ask your coworkers to purchase a new pair of athletic shoes or make a small donation to Shoes That Fit.
 
Happy Thanksgiving!
 

 When a gentleman with a British accent began phoning our headquarters here in Claremont, CA asking to speak to executive director Roni Lomeli, we thought nothing out of the ordinary. When he called again but preferred not to identify himself or leave a message, our interest was peaked. After his third call, he gladly told us his name was John Cooke and he was a correspondent for the National Enquirer! The Enquirer was doing a series of articles entitled, Acts of Kindness which spotlights individuals or organizations that are making a difference and improving the lives of others around them. With an average of 576,000 copies sold each week, we are thrilled about the possibilities this article could bring. Whatever your opinion of the magazine, we think Mr. Cooke did a fantastic job of capturing who and what Shoes That Fit is all about! Click on the image below to read the full article.

 
You can help a child start school on the right foot! Beginning July 31, the annual Shoes That Fit For School campaign kicks off in downtown Claremont, CA. This campaign, a project of the Village Marketing Group provides 400 children with new shoes, socks, backpacks and school supplies. The campaign will run July 31 – August 15
 
Visit a participating store in the Village to pick up a free backpack. Each backpack has a child's name, gender, age and shoe size. You purchase athletic shoes, socks & school supplies then simply return the backpack to the store you picked it up from!
Here is a partial list of participating businesses: 

• Stamp Your Heart Out
• Some Crust Bakery
• LePain Quotidien,
• Sonja Stump Photography
• Studio Claremont
• Young Chefs Academy
• Curves
• The Diamond Center
• Colors 91711
• Lizzie's Gold Mine
• Bert and Rocky's Cream Company
• Saca's Mediterranean Cuisine
• Aromatique
• First City Credit Union
• Claremont Village Treasures
• No Sugar Added
• Dr. Grubb's

With so many families struggling just to buy groceries, many children will return to school this year wearing the same worn out and torn shoes as last year...You can make a difference for one of these children and with all the sales going on in the village, you're sure to find a bargain or two for yourself or your own children! See you in the Village!  
 
 

July has just begun but lots of awesome things are already happening to help kids in need through Shoes That Fit.

• Blues & Brews fundraiser July 3rd was a sold out event with 850 people in attendance, not to mention the great jazz & blues bands playing throughout the Village. Thanks to all our supporters who came out; we all had a blast! 
• Concert Under the Stars Fundraiser at the estate of Herb & Kay Hafif in La Verne, CA begins July 24th & continues the following two Saturdays. Tickets still available, call or email our office today!
• Back to School Campaign in the Claremont Village, CA begins July 31st! Be on the lookout for more detail & sparticipating vendors coming soon!
• $10,000 in grants received today from BCM Foundation & the Walter Lantz Foundation!
• You can also follow us on facebook or twitter!

 
She knew she was wrong, but did it anyway. My friends know I work for Shoes That Fit and love the idea of helping kids get new shoes for school. Some of them, I discovered, go a little too far. My friend Mel is always on the lookout for kids with nasty looking shoes, hoping she can intervene and provide a new pair of athletic shoes for a kid whose family can’t afford them for whatever reason. Mel can be a little pushy, so while in the grocery store, she tells me she spotted a kid who was running around in really awful shoes—holes everywhere, discolored, no shoe strings. She stopped him and asked him if he’d like a new pair of shoes for school, and he looked very confused. As soon as she started this conversation, an adult stepped up and introduced herself as his mother. Mel told her about Shoes That Fit and she was insulted. Mel has learned her lesson!
 
And that brings me to this point: our school programs are structured so that the schools choose kids most in need, not us, nor does the public come to our door for the simple reason that we can’t really tell who’s in need just by looking. If you really want to help children who really need help, start a program here with us. We’ll help you find a school with kids who need and desperately want new shoes, and they and they’re family will be grateful. I promise.

 
You know, feet can be pretty to look at, painted toenails, feet massaged with expensive lotions, looking beautiful in a wonderful pair of summer shoes. My feet aren’t that pretty. As the middle kid in a big family, I got hand-me-downs that were either too big or too small for me. Now, my big toes are crooked, and for a long time I didn’t want people to see my feet, so I’d never wear sandals or anything revealing those terrible toes.
 Here at Shoes That Fit, we get thank you notes from children helped through our programs, and one of the thank you notes, from a little boy, said “thank you for my new shoes. Now when I run and play, I can move my toes.” I know how that child felt. Can you imagine how it feels to not have the shoes you are wearing right now, and instead have shoes that are painful and too small? Last year  in Los Angeles, Shoes That Fit provided over 31,000 new shoes to children in need. We’d love your help in making sure that more children here get the shoes they need to go to school in comfort and with dignity. Can you help? Call us

April 18-24 is National Volunteer Week—what better time to honor the folks who literally put the shoes on our kids’ feet?

Every non-profit relies upon its community of volunteers but none, I dare say, as much as Shoes That Fit. Last year, Shoes That Fit volunteers delivered more than 100,000 pairs of new shoes and other items to children in need all across the country. We have 5 paid staff all working out of one small office. Almost all of the work of Shoes That Fit is done by volunteers working to help children in need in their own communities.

I am honored to recognize you, the heroes of Shoes That Fit. You are changing the lives of children across the country and in your own backyards. You know that by giving a child a new pair of shoes, you are doing so much more. You are giving them the confidence and comfort to run and play with other kids, to participate in class and to care about others the way they have been cared for. You are an inspiration and we thank you for believing as we do, that every child deserves shoes that fit.

You, too, can join this amazing family of Shoes That Fit volunteers and begin helping children in your own communities. Download, complete and return a Shoes That Fit Participation Agreement from this website and we will send you our Shoes That Fit Start-up Kit that provides you with almost everything you will need to get up and running.

To you, our Shoes That Fit volunteers past, present and future, thank you so much for all that you do.