SANDRA Christie Brown knows what it’s like attending school without shoes.

When she visited her alma mater, Maverley Primary and Infant School in the Corporate Area, and saw students frolicking without shoes during break period, while others were wearing shabby footwear, she knew exactly what she needed to do.

As the president and founder of Finding your Light Foundation, Christie Brown launched a shoe locker initiative last week, through her non-profit venture, so that the children will no longer be in need of shoes.

“I remember growing up in St Mary and went to school without shoes. The other day I saw children running around at recess at the school and when I asked, ‘Where are your shoes?’ they said, ‘It’s in the classroom. And mommy said we can’t play in the shoes because we will mash it up and the shoes have to last us.’ Some of them have the shoes and say it is burning their toes and they can’t wear it,” Christie Brown told the Jamaica Observer.

“Growing up, most of the times it was very hard for us and we had only one pair of shoes to go to school. It was very challenging for the parents because of the high unemployment in the area and they didn’t have enough money, so students there who [did have] shoes couldn’t even play in them,” she added.

She recalled her interaction with a student of Maverley Primary and Infant School who was wearing shoes in a poor condition, and said she was saddened about the matter, so much so that she decided to keep the old pair of shoes after the child got a new pair, as a reminder of the needs of the children .

“It humbled me and broke my heart. When I looked at her and saw the shoes she was wearing with holes in it, it really broke my heart and I immediately said, ‘Here is the suitcase. Go through it and find a pair that can fit you.’ She was filled with joy. I took her shoes with the holes, and I am carrying it back to America to remind me where I came from,” she said.

A total of 40 pairs of shoes kick-started the launch last week. Students will have to consult with the guidance counsellor regarding shoe size in order to get suitable footwear.

“We are starting this shoes closet, and we have hopes of furnishing it. We do not want to wait until a child is running around without shoes; if a child is in need, all they have to do is go to the guidance counsellor and pick the size, and they give the child the shoes,” she explained.

She is hoping to offer US$500 book scholarships, along with shoes, for students at the school by next year.