Pontiac Shoedrive spearheaded by generosity and giving attitudes

Posted on November 21, 2017

OSF St. JamesOSF St. James-John W. Albrecht Medical Center in Pontiac collected over 450 pairs of shoes in their latest shoe drive. (WJBC file photo)

By Cyndi Grau

If the quote, “Good shoes take you good places…” is true, hundreds of people have an interesting journey ahead thanks to a central Illinois shoe drive; which is already being considered wildly successful.

The physical therapy team at OSF Healthcare Saint James in Pontiac collected new or gently used shoes through October and the result surprised organizers, in a good way, bringing in many more pairs than anticipated.

St. James Community Relations Coordinator Pam Meiner says they didn’t set an official goal beforehand, but when the final count came up to 450 pairs, it reinforced how giving people are in central Illinois.

“We were astounded. Just astounded. Overwhelmed, in a good way. The generosity of the community and our fellow OSF mission partners, they really turned out for those in need,” said Meiner. “And then when members of the team started to call organizations here in town, and ask them if they would like some shoes; the eager response they recieved from those organizations, just confirmed for them once again that they had done a wonderful thing. That truly would impact people in our community especially with the winter months coming up.”

Places getting shoes inlcude: the Hope Pregnancy Center, Livingston County Health Department, the Salvation Army and the St. Vincent De Paul Pantry in the Pontiac area.

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