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Lim-Prasad, Walton launch their shoe donation campaign for needy youth

SINGAPORE – Tay Soon Xun was beaming yesterday as he received his first-ever pair of neon-yellow Nike running shoes. Money is tight for the 13-year-old from Northlight School, as his stepfather, a mechanic, and mother, who works in a laundry, have to support their family of seven.

James Walton and Dipna Lim-Prasad have already collected over 350 pairs of shoes to date. Their aim is to collect 1,000 pairs of shoes this year, before upping the target to 3,000 to 5,000 pairs per year. PHOTO: ROBIN CHOO/TODAY

James Walton and Dipna Lim-Prasad have already collected over 350 pairs of shoes to date. Their aim is to collect 1,000 pairs of shoes this year, before upping the target to 3,000 to 5,000 pairs per year. PHOTO: ROBIN CHOO/TODAY

 

SINGAPORE – Tay Soon Xun was beaming yesterday as he received his first-ever pair of neon-yellow Nike running shoes. Money is tight for the 13-year-old from Northlight School, as his stepfather, a mechanic, and mother, who works in a laundry, have to support their family of seven. 

The teenager was part of a group of youths from CareRunners, LoveSG and Northlight who received spruced-up second-hand shoes at the official launch of the In My Shoes movement yesterday at the Ministry of Education (Evans) Stadium. 

Co-founded by national hurdler Dipna Lim-Prasad and James Walton, Deloitte Singapore’s Sports Business Group Leader, the initiative takes unwanted sports shoes, cleans them up and redistributes them to disadvantaged youths in Singapore.  

Soon Xun, who used to work weekends clearing plates at weddings for pocket money, had previously turned up for school athletics training in his white canvas shoes. Not anymore. 

“I like my shoes because they are new,” said the sprinter. “I can use them for running my event, the 100m. I hope maybe I can run faster.”

Nurul Lisa Mohammad Syahrin, 16, was also happy to show off her Nike shoes yesterday, pairing her pink-and-white running shoes with her favourite pair of Santa Claus socks. 

“I’m very appreciative … my shoes are very pretty and I really like them,” said the Hua Yi Secondary School student, who is part of SportCares’ Saturday Night Lights football  programme. 

“My old pair of Nikes are about four years old, so I can use these for running the 2.4km (test).”

“At first, I didn’t know about this (In My Shoes) but I was told I would get shoes. I got the same pair that Dipna also has, so that’s special. I hope others will be as fortunate.”

To date, In My Shoes, which started early this year, has collected over 350 pairs of shoes, with the athletics fraternity contributing more than 100 pairs. 

Lim-Prasad and Walton have also welcomed founding partners Deloitte Singapore, Fullerton Health Foundation, SportCares and Osim. The aim is to collect 1,000 pairs of shoes this year, before upping the target to 3,000 to 5,000 pairs per year. 

Besides shoe-collection drives, packing, checking inventory, and planning, the duo have also been hard at work cleaning the shoes at the Singapore Sports Institute. 

But seeing the smiles on their beneficiaries’ faces has made it worthwhile, as Lim-Prasad said yesterday: “It’s been great … the national athletes have been contributing shoes, and it’s not just track and field. We have sailors, netballers coming forward.

“Seeing the kids so happy, my heart just melted. It is so worth it.”

Walton added: “The response has been phenomenal. We have so many Team Singapore athletes coming in with their shoes and I received so many emails and Facebook messages from the public.”

The movement also plans to work with corporates, sports associations, running clubs, and sports events to organise shoe donation drives. So far, the Braddell Heights Runners Club, MetaSprint Series triathlon, Singapore Kindness Run and Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants have pitched in to help. 

The shoe collection will also be expanded to include netball shoes and football boots this year. 

They will also be organising an auction at the end of the year to raise funds for their initiatives, with the target pegged at S$100,000. Items up for auction will include Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale’s football boots, and Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs’ autographed boots.  

The movement is also working with the Football Association of Singapore to obtain items from the teams and players who will be in town in July for the International Champions Cup. 

Contact the co-founders at InMyShoesSG [at] gmail.com to donate your shoes, or make a donation at https://www.giving.sg/campaigns/inmyshoes

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