Iowans Sort Thousands of Shoes to Send to Haiti

By Mark Geary, Reporter

People in the island country of Haiti wade through flood waters on September 5, 2008 after Hurricane Hanna hit. That was just one of several hurricanes that devastated the country this season. Hundreds of people died in the storms and others still remain missing.

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By Mark Geary

Story Created: Jan 8, 2009 at 8:56 PM CST

Story Updated: Jan 9, 2009 at 12:08 AM CST

CEDAR RAPIDS – Four hurricanes hit Haiti last year and left many people homeless, without any possessions. However, a string of circumstances have created the perfect opportunity for Iowans to help.

Members of the First Church Open Bible already accomplished an amazing feat. They matched hundreds of shoes and tied them together. Thousands of others remain mixed-up.

Steve and Barry's donated the footwear after the local department store closed. The shoes arrived unsorted and mismatched. Church members are pairing them together to ship them to hurricane victims in Haiti.

"Here in the states, we can go buy what we want when we want them. In Haiti, they can't,” Sonny Friis said.

Dozens of different colors, styles and sizes lie scattered across the room.

"It's exhausting, but we just keep at it until we're done,” Dave Wagner said.

"Sometimes you'll find a 9, but there's no 9 left shoe or right shoe to fit it. So, you take a 9 and a 9.5 and put those together,” Friis said.

It's going to take several months to ship all the shoes because there's just so many of them.

"Some little boy will love these...bright yellow and black. They're Hawkeye colors!" Chris Coleman said.

"Think of the little children wearing these shoes. I wish I could be there to see it,” Kay Friis said.

No matter how much time it takes, or how frustrating the job might be, volunteers know their efforts will bring comfort to the souls of people who just need a little support.

Even though the church has thousands of shoes to give away, they don't have enough children's sizes.

If you'd like to donate any new shoes for children ranging from one to ten-years-old, you can drop them off at the church. The address is: 1911 E Ave. NW. You can also call the church as well. The phone number is 319.363.3117.

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