One for One

i first heard of toms shoes on oprah. normally, i'm not a fan; however, she was right on target about this company. and they are the new obsession of our campus. the company's slogan is "one for one" because for every pair of shoes that you purchase, toms will give one to a child in need around the world. their website (tomsshoes.com-check it out and buy a pair) says that they have given over 10,000 pairs to children in argentina and over 50,000 pairs to children in south africa. founder blake mycoskie has even planned so-called "shoe drops" in domestic, poverty stricken areas such as the mississippi delta. i'm so on board with that. mycoskie developed the idea for toms on a trip to argentina, when he noticed that the children there did not have shoes and were suffering from hookworm and infections. the classic toms shoe is modeled after the traditional argentinian shoe.

today, the ole miss student organization hope for africa and toms held an event outside of the union at which students were able to purchase and paint their own toms. while the website and stores sell solid colored or printed shoes, most of these were white. i was even able to get my hands on a red pair. on it i painted romans 10:15, "how beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news." this was toms second trip to our campus, and i hope they'll return. i'll be lined up waiting for them.