I will not look at a pair of TOMS
shoes in the same way again. I didn’t find the canvas ones that so many people
wear very attractive. My bad! Now, I can’t wait to get a pair and be able to
support such a noble initiative by the company and its founder.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine
Refugees (UNRWA) has partnered with TOMS to supply Palestinian refugee children
living in Jordan and Gaza with shoes.
TOMS will provide shoes and support the local distribution
expenses through its “Last Mile Contribution.” The expenses covered include,
freight, vehicle rentals, fuel, storage, and labor required to get the shoes
from their factory to the children in Gaza and Jordan.
TOMS is an American company founded by Blake
Mycoskie, who had a vision to help children in need of shoes. He
started with the TOMS Shoes “One for One” project. The company donates a shoe
to a child in need every time a consumer purchases a TOMS shoe.
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| Distributing TOMS shoes in Gaza (photo via UNRWA) |
TOMS shoes were distributed to students enrolled in 1st and
2nd grade in UNRWA schools. In March alone, approximately 100,000 pairs of
TOMS were distributed to children in Gaza where UNRWA provides education to
approximately 240,000 students in 252 schools. Many families, living on less
than $1.53 per person per day, lack even the means to meet their basic food and
living requirements. Receiving an essential item such as shoes for their
children allows families to free some resources to purchase food.
Having shoes to wear to school is an important component of
the right to an adequate standard of living, as enshrined in Article 25 of the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reiterated in the Convention on the
Rights of the Child.
In Jordan, shoes were distributed to students enrolled in
grades one and two in UNRWA schools, and out-of-school children receiving
social safety net benefits or on the social safety net waitlist. UNRWA provides
basic education to over 117,000 students at 175 UNRWA schools in Jordan. This
education program helps young people develop the knowledge and skills they need
to thrive as adults in an evolving, challenging landscape.
TOMS
STORY
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| Blake Mycoskie distributing shoes to children |
In 2006, American traveler Blake Mycoskie befriended children
in a village in Argentina and found they had no shoes to protect their feet.
Wanting to help, he created TOMS, a company that would match every pair of
shoes purchased with a pair of new shoes given to a child in need – One for
One.
TOMS has given over 35 million pairs of shoes to children in
need. TOMS® Shoes are always given to children through
humanitarian organizations who incorporate shoes into their community
development programs.
Realizing that One for One could serve other global needs, Mycoskie
launched TOMS Eyewear in 2011 to help restore sight to persons in need with
every purchase of sunglasses and optical frames.
TOMS Eyewear has helped restore sight to over 275,000
people in need in 13 countries. The eyewear initiative provides prescription
glasses, medical treatment and/or sight-saving surgery with each purchase of
eyewear.
In 2014, TOMS Roasting Co. launched with the mission to
provide safe water to developing communities with the purchase of premium
coffee.
In 2015, TOMS Bag Collection launched in four countries with three
Giving Partners to help address the need for advancements in maternal health.
Purchases of TOMS Bags help provide training for skilled birth attendants and the
distribution of birth kits containing items that help a woman safely deliver
her baby. Every TOMS bag purchased helps provide a safe birth for a mother and
baby in need.
Will stop now and go find a TOMS store…
