Neighboring South Hill businesses work together on shoe drive

July 15, 2015

by McKenzie MacDonald With the start of a new school year quickly approaching, ET Wireless and Bonners Ferry’s local food bank (Community Action Partnership) are working hard to make sure that every child has a new pair of shoes to wear on the first day. “We are hoping to give as many kids as we can a new pair of shoes,” said Joy Schmitz at ET Wireless. A similar collaborative effort by these two businesses was a great success during Christmas time, when their Tree of Joy program provided gifts to at least two-dozen local children in need. Here is how it works: Liz Bigsby-Sanborn at Community Action Partnership sees a lot of families as they come in and make use of her facility. “It’s a great way to find people that have a need,” she said. Her role in the drive is to give families information about the program the businesses are working on. Interested families provide her with their children’s information (name, shoe size, etc.). At the end of July, all of the sign-ups will be taken to Joy at ET Wireless. Joy has an agreement with Larson’s downtown and will be purchasing brand new shoes for the children signed up. Where does the money come from? Each quarter, Joy budgets a percentage of the sales from her store and donates it back to the community. This quarter, her donation will go toward this shoe drive. “As people continue to support me, I continue to give back to the community,” said Joy. She is very excited that this program is being done locally 100%. While Joy will be chipping in for the new shoes, donations from community members are also encouraged. Once the shoes are purchased, they will be distributed a few days before the start of the new school year. While there is no specific target number for pairs of shoes, the two businesses do have a goal in mind. The goal is to “make sure that we will get shoes for every kid that signs up,” said Liz. “It’s a wonderful, wonderful program.” To donate to the effort, call Joy at ET Wireless: (208) 267-7100. If interested in receiving a pair of shoes, contact Liz at Community Action Partnership: (208) 267-3663 Both businesses are located at 6665 Main St. in Bonners Ferry.