In the halls on April 22nd, it was not difficult to spot bare feet walking to and from class. Students walked the new hallways barefoot for the annual “One Day Without Shoes”, an event started by TOMS founder Blake Mycoskie.
This day is scheduled to raise awareness of how simple things like a pair of shoes can have a profound effect on everyday life in countries where footwear is a rarity, yet mandatory for attending school and maintaining good health.
Locally, the event was organized by students approximately four years ago.. This year, senior Joshua Marcks took on the task. Marcks said, “‘One Day Without Shoes’… was very important to someone I know and became an annual event at Waterford. I’m happy to see so many people going out of their ways to try and understand how people outside of their individual frame of reference live.”
Senior Kayla Richardson said the new school helped with going barefoot. Richardson said ,“The floors were still fairly clean from the new school, yet it was still enough to get just an idea of what kids in countries like Africa have to go through on a daily basis.”
Sophomore Sarah Stryker said, “Participating gave me a new and unexpected perspective. What began as a fun and flashy activity ended as a burden, but a feeling of awareness and appreciation.”
Junior Nathaniel Ross said that getting people to understand worldwide struggles is not the only benefit to “One Day Without Shoes”. He said, “It raises empathy. Most people don’t know what it’s like to have to go without shoes. A lot of people even say they’d prefer it. I can safely say that, after walking a half mile to my bus stop and feeling like my soles were going to get sanded down to nothing, not being able to wear shoes sucks.”
In addition to the movement, there were bins located throughout the building to house donated shoes to be shipped to an organization called Soles for Souls for distribution to people in underdeveloped countries. Students came into school with bags and boxes of shoes of every kind to donate.
Stryker added, “It felt good to donate shoes to the cause. I realized that what were a pair of out-of-season flats to me could be the saving grace to two sore bare feet somewhere else.”