Nonprofit provides students with new kicks

Moniteau County Health Center Administrator Andrea Kincaid
Moniteau County Health Center Administrator Andrea Kincaid

Since January of 2018, one nonprofit has helped put 210 new pairs of shoes on the feet of the children of Moniteau County.

The Sneaker Project - formerly known as the Dental, Eye and Shoe Program - is a United Way 501c3 program that provides tennis shoes for children enrolled in schools in grades K-12 in Cole, Miller, Moniteau and Osage counties. Children who receive free lunch are eligible to receive services through this program. The nonprofit is allotted a dollar amount in the spring and again in the fall in an effort to fulfill as much of the need as possible. Moniteau County received its funding for shoe vouchers at the end of July, allowing each eligible child to receive a pair of shoes, valued up to $30.

The Sneaker Project works directly with the county nurses that are in the schools to provide sneakers to Central Missouri youth. For Moniteau County, the nonprofit works with Moniteau County Health Center administrator Andrea Kincaid to identify and coordinate ordering and shipping the right amount of shoes that are needed.

"We are an agency partially funded by the United Way of Central Missouri," The Sneaker Project Executive Director Lorie Smith said. "We also hold fundraiser events to raise funds to complete our mission for the school year. This coming year, we will be providing sneakers via Drop Shop from Amazon to our referred children. We have an official order form used by the county health nurses and social workers based on the child's gender, shoe size and any special needs. After the order is received, it only takes a few days to be received by either the student at home or the school counselor."

Bev Bisges, president of The Sneaker Project, said she believes the drop ship method had been very effective and successful. The nonprofit started off using a voucher system and parents just shopped for the shoes. But within the last year and a half, they started transitioning to drop shipping because the turn around time is so much quicker.

One of this year's fundraising efforts will be Oct. 31, the second Haunted Hustle 5K. Since it's on Halloween, the Haunted Hustle is costume encouraged; there's even a costume contest. The event is open to all, but is mainly geared toward children.

"We encourage donations on our website, and we have done a postcard campaign, announcing our new name and direction," Smith said. "A $30 donation will provide a student in your local community a brand-new pair of shoes to wear during the school year."

The Sneaker Project believes the children who receive these new shoes gain the confidence to run faster, jump higher and dance happily into a brighter future.