New Shoes Collected by South Main Baptist Church Through August

Mid-August in Houston means two things: children heading back to school and the annual Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls collection drive by South Main Baptist Church.

For the past 18 years, South Main has hosted the Houston shoe drive to help put new pairs of shoes on the feet of vulnerable children in Texas and around the world. Last year, over 10,000 pairs of shoes collected through the church's drive went directly to victims of Hurricane Harvey.

New pairs of shoes are currently being accepted through the month of August. Shoes may be left in the Welcome Center contribution cage, located within South Main at 4100 S Main St, Houston, TX 77002. Monetary contributions may be made by writing a check to South Main or online at www.smbc.org/giving. Designate Shoes for Orphan Souls.

According to South Main's Facebook page, orphanages throughout the world do not receive enough funding to support the hundreds of thousands of orphans in their care. One of the greatest and most immediate needs of these children is a pair of shoes. Many of the children receive one pair of shoes to last the entire year, and some don’t have shoes at all. The donation of a new pair of shoes or a monetary contribution, which can be stretched to purchase shoes in bulk, will make a huge difference.

Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls®, the largest humanitarian aid project of Buckner International, provides new shoes and socks to orphans and vulnerable children in the United States and throughout the world - 30 percent of the shoes stay within the U.S.

Every Thursday morning this month, South Main church members will meet to unpack and sort donated shoes. On Sunday, Sept. 2, volunteers will pack and ship the tens of thousands of collected shoes to the Buckner International Center for Humanitarian Aid in Dallas, where the shoes will be distributed to children in need.

All donated shoes must be new.