Local church eyes spare shoes

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June 4, 2012 - 12:00 AM

Lillie Collins knows a thing or two about kids and how fast they go through a pair of shoes. She raised five sons and a daughter and has 19 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren.

All of which prompted Collins to give her wholehearted endorsement to a project just started by the Iola Nazarene Ladies Ministry to collect shoes for needy Iola children.

“There are a lot of families in Iola hurting right now, out of work or having a hard time making ends meet,” Collins said, a member of the group. “It costs a lot to raise children,” with shoes being a high-priced part of the equation.

Kids often outgrow shoes before they’ve received the good from them, she said.

The women’s group meets periodically for an after-church luncheon.

“Some of us thought we needed a project, something we could do to help the community and give us something to do as a group,” Micky Kinzle said. “That’s when we came up with the shoe project.”

Boxes have been placed in several Iola businesses, including banks, and will be put in others, Kinzle said.

The women will pick up shoes at least once a week, with a target date for first distribution in mid-August just before kids trek back to school for the fall semester.

“We want shoes for all ages of kids, including preschool,” Sharon Lane said. “And we’ll also take donations so we can buy shoes,” said Collins.

Shoes contributed should be in good condition, Kinzle added.

“We want kids to have good shoes, particularly when it gets cold,” she said, recalling that many times she had noticed children walking to school in dead of winter wearing flip-flops, which offered no protection against the cold.

While the project began as an over-summer event, “if it works out well we may continue to collect shoes,” Kinzle said. “Kids needs new (to them) shoes all the time, not just once a year.”

That got an amen from Collins. She has watched her brood go through one pair after another during rapid growth in their younger years.

People who have shoes to donate and have difficulty getting them to a collection point may call Kinzle, 365-3430, Teresa Hanson, 228-7183, or Collins, 365-3309, to arrange pickup.

Kinzle added that in early August the group would announce a day for shoe distribution at First Church of the Nazarene, 1235 N. Walnut St.

“Remember,” she admonished potential donors, “God loves a cheerful giver.”

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