We Bring Relief
Since our founding in 2010, Shoes 4 the Shoeless has delivered brand-new gym shoes and socks to disadvantaged children within Southwest Ohio through our in-school delivery program. The need is still great, so our work continues.
Will you help us?
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Children Served in 20250
Ohio Counties0
SchoolsOur Story
It Starts Like Most Stories Out There
A few people recognized an overwhelming need and had to do something about it. Since then, countless volunteers and donors have stepped up to meet one of the biggest unmet health care needs for children in poverty.
Our shoes and socks bring relief, hope, encouragement, and comfort to local children in desperate need. With your help, we can make a difference!
Making a Meaningful ImpactThe Need Is Great.
The Need Is Great.
The Opportunity Is Greater.
In 2025, Shoes 4 The Shoeless served 21,000+ children with brand new shoes and socks. However, across our 21-county footprint, we estimate that 72,000 children are still in need.
That means we are currently reaching about 30% of the need.
Together, we can close the gap.
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Children Served in 20250
School & Community Partners0
Ohio Counties Served Across Our RegionGet to Know Us
It Takes a TEAM
To deliver thousands of shoes each year, it takes incredible planning and coordination. Get to know our Staff Team, our Board of Directors, and our Greater Cincinnati Advisory Council.
What's Going On?
Wondering what we've been up to lately?
Year-round we stay busy hosting events all over the Miami Valley and Greater Cincinnati area. If you would like to keep up with us and see our mission in action, be sure to follow us on our social spaces!
The majority of the children we serve are from preschool to elementary ages.We also serve older children through high school age. Today, we learned that one of our more rural schools has a large group of high school students participating in their JROTC program, which requires physical training, including running.Many of these students run barefoot, in shoes that don't fit and are falling apart, or in boots. We will take care of that quickly!Most of these students live in deep poverty and are working after school to help pay expenses at home. Their homes lack washers and dryers.Would anyone be willing to donate a compact washer-dryer unit to this program? It will be installed at the school.These kids are working hard to bring better times to their lives and their families' lives.Let me know if you would like more details.Kris@shoes4theshoeless.orgTh#goodnessandmercyssandmercy
SUCCESS! SUCCESS! SUCCESS! We have two podiatry doctors on our advisory team as consultants because we see thousands of children each year with damaged feet. The majority of the time the damage has been caused by wearing shoes many sizes too small, but not always.The little girl in this picture could only walk on her tip-toes. It was impossible for her to flatten her feet normally. She told us she had been that way her whole life.For many reasons, (all bad), she had never received medical care, never attended a school long enough for a school nurse to become involved, and had never encountered any adult who was willing and able to help.When we met her she was in a new school. She had only been there a few weeks, but was already being made fun of every day by other students. Some of the adults in the building made the false assumption that her problem was behavioral.We send a picture on -the- spot to Dr. White, who along with her school nurse started a conversation with her new caregivers. For the first time in her life she was given hope.I will never forget the look on her face when we told her there were people who could help her.Her incredible journey began the day we saw her.Dr. White became her hope. He evaluated her, then arranged for the surgery she needed to correct an issue she was born with.She is now back in school, walking normally for the first time ever. Soon, she will be able to run, climb, jump and play like the other kids.Here is part of a letter we received recently from her school nurse."her confidence was low, she rarely smiled, her family had no idea of who to turn to for help. She recently had her surgery, and the transformation has been remarkable. Today, she beams when she smiles. Seeing her increased confidence and happiness has been truly heartwarming"What we do matters.Stay with us, please.#healthneed. . #goodnessandmercy💕❤
A few things make kids anxious and afraid as we help them.For starters, they're afraid of a gym full of strangers wanting to take their shoes off.Then they are afraid we are going to ask them for money, send a bill home, or keep their old shoes in exchange.We have tried-and-true ways to overcome these fears.Communication is key; body language, tone of voice, and word choice matter. We train all volunteers in these things before we begin. Today, we needed to add another layer of support. Many of the children we served were hearing impaired. Thankfully, we had ASL teachers working along side our incredibly kind and patient volunteers.We had a really great day.Stay with us, please. There are thousands more children on our li#goodnessandmercymercy
School started for him weeks ago. He cried every, single day, but would not say what was wrong.His teacher realized that part of the reason was that his feet hurt because his shoes were many sizes too small.When we took his shoes off, he had small cuts along the sides of his toes from his sharp toenails pressing into his skin. The day we replaced his shoes with ones that were a perfect fit, he stopped crying for a bit.We cannot solve every problem kids like this have, but the one we solve matters.Stay with us, please. #healthneed
It is a myth that special-needs children have everything they need provided whenever they need it.Wait times for appointments and appliances can be months long. Wait times to obtain new AFOs (braces) when they have outgrown their current ones can be too.We love it when we can provide the shoes and socks they need on-the-spot.This young boy communicated via his board. He told us he only wanted green, red, and black shoes.Finding the right shoe to fit over an AFO is always a challenge. Finding the right colors an even greater challenge.But it worked! He was absolutely delighted. As soon as the shoes were on his feet, he wanted to get out of his wheelchair and walk.Shoes bring joy to kids who need them.Stay with us, please. This is a health care need. #goodnessandmercy. .
Our delivery tomorrow to Summit in Middletown is canceled! We just got word that their A/C went out.We will reschedule, so stay tuned!
Questions or Comments?
Get in Touch
If you know us, you know that we love talking about what we do and meeting new people. If you don’t know us, we’d love to talk with you! Whether you want to share an idea, talk about a need, or just say hi, we would love to hear from you.