JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The line was out the door and almost to the road as students and parents gathered outside Carter G. Woodson Elementary for the ninth annual Kicks for the Kids.
Rose Brunette is a grandmother of eight. She brought her grandchildren to the shoe giveaway and said she's on a mission.
“(I'm) trying to get shoes for schools. Thank you, Jesus. I sure appreciate it. I sure need it too, 'cause God knows (about) the little bit of food stamps we get,” Brunette said.
Brittney Respess has two children and appreciates the help from the Kicks for the Kids' event. “(It's) very important to everybody. We really need this in our community. We need the help, definitely; shoes for the girls so they can have nice stuff to go back to school with,” Respess said.
Tyrese Thomas is an elementary student who was smiling as he waited for his turn to pick out new kicks.“I am getting shoes,” he said.
Cody Schumm is a Duval County Public Schools student who knows what he wants. “Basketball shoes,” he said adding that he's been to the event before and loves it.
Founder of Kicks for the Kids Tan Mayhew said, “This is our ninth year. The need is definitely here. One of the things we stress is this is not just for what we consider to be poor. My sister, Veronica, a social worker said, 'Kids were going to miss the first couple weeks of school because they didn’t have shoes that could fit.' And so, I said, "Why don’t we ask our friends?' Thirty days later, we had 75 pairs of shoes. Nine years later, we are going to be giving away more than 3,500 pairs of shoes.”
That will make 2019 a record year for the number of shoes donated to Kicks for the Kids. News4Jax is a proud sponsor of Kicks for the Kids.
Any shoes left over will be donated to agencies throughout Jacksonville.