Shoes That Fit Delaware seeks partnerships in Sussex County

Walking a mile in someone else’s shoes may be the best way to understand that person’s plight, but what if that person cannot fit in their own pair of shoes?

Elodie McGuirk was a single mother of two living in California in 1992 when she learned about a young boy attending the same school as her children. Complaining that his feet hurt, he was sent to the nurse, who discovered the shoes were so undersized the boy’s toes were curling. Lacking resources, all the nurse could do was massage the child’s aching feet. McGuirk decided she needed to do something, and her charity, Shoes That Fit, was founded that year.

Shoes That Fit is a national nonprofit with 140 chapters, including one in Delaware, with a mission to tackle one of the most visible signs of poverty in America by giving children in need new athletic shoes so they can attend school with dignity and joy, prepared to learn, play and thrive. The Delaware chapter began 26 years ago in 1998, when Joanne Glauser read about the nonprofit in a magazine, one year after her daughter was born.

“We work directly with the homeless advocates in the schools,” Glauser said. “There are school designates who know which children are in a situation where they don't have a permanent home and need additional resources. One of those resources that they can get through us is new sneakers.”

Forming valuable partnerships over the years with companies like Nordstrom, Nike, Rack Room Shoes and Skechers as well as professional sports teams the Los Angeles Dodgers, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, San Antonio Spurs and Anaheim Ducks, the process differs a bit from other wearable drives.

“We don't make judgments about who gets the sneakers; we work with the school and they tell us who needs them – then we provide the funding,” Glauser said,  “We get a list from the school of how many males and females, and what size. We take that list and send it to our California society.”

Glauser explained that the national chapter, based in Claremont, Calif., has a huge warehouse filled with name-brand shoes like Nike, Adidas, Puma and Fila, available for delivery at a total cost of only $30, paid by Shoes That Fit.

“My organization subsidizes to make sure we give the highest-quality shoe to that child,” Glauser said,

Statewide, Shoes That Fit helps about 3,300 Delaware students, 527 in Sussex County, where Shoes That Fit began expanding its footprint about 15 years ago. 

“It’s not a small amount of kids, and the situations are constantly changing,” Glauser said

Often described as an invisible population, children are experiencing homelessness can be hard to pinpoint, but luckily the McKinney-Vento Act has mandated schools dedicate resources to identify and support the struggling students in their districts. These children, by definition, do not have a permanent place to live and are often left wondering where they will sleep each night. 

“It's very chaotic,” Glauser said. “If you don't have a permanent home and you have to do something that requires having an internet connection, you're gonna have to go to a library, because you don't have that. There's going to be a challenge for getting food at night, right? Your main meal of the day might be through the lunch program. Then in the summer, you're gonna have to figure that out, because you're not going to have that meal at lunch. It's constant.”

The profound impact the new shoes have on the children ripples through their daily lives. New items may not be something they often receive, so the free shoes bolster a newfound pride for the kids. 

“Something as simple as shoes, and they’re brand new, is almost beyond their ability to comprehend,” Glauser said. “They’re so excited, shocked and stunned sometimes, because that just doesn’t happen in their world. It gives them a sense of hope, that there’s somebody out there in the community thinking about them.”

Bullying, which has risen in places to alarming levels, often starts with the type of shoes students wear to school and can be quelled by the presence of clean kicks. Kids in ill-fitting shoes, big or small, may also have confidence issues when engaging in physical activity with their peers, fearing injury in too-large shoes or blistering from smaller shoes.

“I’ve seen a second-grade girl shuffling around in men’s size 12 shoes,” Glauser said. “Picture doing that all day.”

Surveys conducted on recipients a few months after students received their shoes have shown increases in physical activities, classroom engagements, peer interactions and attendance.  Glauser thinks the properly fitting footwear allows them to walk correctly and eases the pain ill-fitting shoes cause. She also noted that beyond the physical benefits, there are social and psychological advantages for kids who rarely experience such positive reinforcement.

“For them to think that somebody thought of them, not on a special day, and gave them something that was brand new, is almost like a red-letter day for them,” Glauser said. 

Schools have embraced the presence of Shoes That Fit because, Glauser said, it allows them to focus their resources on other areas of need.

While the nonprofit has operated in Sussex County for 15 years, the rising cost of living in the county has only increased the number of students in need of the free service. 

“This is a worthy cause that has been around and helping Sussex for a while,” Glauser said. “We’re just trying to rejuvenate.”

Monetary donations are always welcome, but Glauser is hoping to raise awareness and funds through partnerships with other local nonprofits, organizations and businesses. She said Shoes That Fit Delaware needs grant writers, public relations professionals and a strategic partner to help it continue to address this silent problem in schools. The longtime Delaware resident is issuing a challenge to leaders in Sussex County.

“Who would like to, whether it’s a business, person or community organization, donate any amount?” Glauser said, noting that just $100 will provide three pairs of shoes.

Hoping to partner with local churches or nonprofits that address homelessness and poverty, Glauser would like to do fundraisers and sock drives, and she hopes to attract volunteers to help the hosting organization they partner with. She would like to make Shoes That Fit a normal part of the giving in Sussex County.

Anyone wishing to donate their time or money can contact Glauser by emailing jhglaus@gmail.com. See more information at shoesthatfit.org.