Results for Shoes Enthusiasts
Shoes Enthusiasts across north Missouri –
Thank you, thank you, thank you…for another fantastic year of shoes collection for orphans, this year orphans in Guatemala and Kenya.
I’m happy you have cleared the shoes shelves of all the retailers in north Missouri (and in Joplin, and in southern Iowa, as we heard during the Shoes Roll Call)!
Our Shoes Caravan was a wonderful experience along the 20 caravan stops, from Higginsville to Chillicothe. Your Shoes Roll Call reports in Chillicothe on Saturday were fabulous. We exceeded our goal, collecting nearly 17,000 pairs of shoes, over 2,000 pairs of socks, over 600 pairs of shoelaces, and nearly $13,000 in cash. And there are a few more clubs to report.
It is amazing work our 56 Rotary Clubs do together. We have now exceeded 300,000 pairs of shoes in our 16 years of this project. That’s a lot of children.
Caravan photographer Valerie Anderson (North Kansas City Rotary Club) has provided the links below to the photos from the weekend, for your enjoyment and use.
I have included two attachments to this email – (1) the Shoes Roll Call results spreadsheet; and (2) a template press release for use in your local communities, to raise awareness for Rotary. I hope you will use these documents to energize your club and your community. Share these results with your club at its next meeting.
Special thanks to all the Rotarians who met us along the caravan trail; to John Gill (Richmond Rotary Club) for his tractor, and his driving skills; to Phyllis Dieckmann (Higginsville Rotary Club) for the trailer; to Cassy Venters and Governor Kim LeSage for joining the shoes caravan; to UPS drivers Patrick O’Connell and Roger Copple, who in Chillicothe transferred our shoes from our trailer to the UPS trailer, and drove our shoes to Kansas City to be placed on the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad, for transport to Dallas; to UPS drivers in Dallas who will pick up the trailer tomorrow (Wednesday) morning, and transport our shoes to the Humanitarian Aid Warehouse of Buckner Orphan Care International in Dallas; to Rachel Wallis, the Director of Shoes for Orphan Souls in Dallas, for joining us on the caravan, reminding us of the importance of our work, and who will coordinate the many volunteers tomorrow morning in Dallas to unload our shoes; and to Buckner for their 16-year partnership in getting shoes from North Missouri to the needy, waiting feet of orphan children around the world.
It was our pleasure to recognize Scott Collins from Buckner, Rachel Wallis from Buckner, Patrick O’Connell from UPS, and Roger Copple from UPS, with a Paul Harris Fellow award during our time together.
The best news yet…we’re ready for next year. Our 17th year. Mark your club, and personal, calendars. The Shoes Caravan will be April 26-27-28, 2018, with the caravan ending in Macon for our District Assembly and Shoes Roll Call.
I’ll plan to see you there. It’s my privilege to partner with you. Be thinking about who in your club will be the next Shoes Guru, Shoes Queen, Shoes Princess, Sole Sister, or Shoes Cheerleader.
Or just simply the Shoes Chair.
On behalf of the orphan children who will receive something new, from you…. thank you.
Keep up the great work of Rotary. Enjoy the pictures…and the smiles.
Larry
Your Shoes Cheerleader