AKWESASNE, NY — The Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club is pleased to announce that we were selected as an official partner of Payless Gives Shoes 4 Kids, an annual giving program from Payless ShoeSource. We are among 700 charitable agencies representing all 50 states in the United States, as well as Canada, Puerto Rico and 11 Latin American countries. The Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club distributed coupons for children’s shoes to the families of our club members over the Holidays.

“The Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club’s mission is to help serve those who are most in need and this opportunity helps us to do just that,” says Jessica Cree Jock, Executive Director.

This is the fourth year of the Payless Gives Shoes 4 Kids program. “With unemployment still so high, the success of the program, and the number of children we have been able to help, drive our efforts,” says LuAnn Via, CEO of Payless Shoe Source.

“Although studies show that properly fitting shoes are important for children’s health and development, a striking number of children don’t own a pair of shoes that fit. We are working to remedy that here in New York.”

“We want as many children as possible to experience the simple joy of a new pair of shoes. We want them to walk into one of our stores, look up at rows of shoeboxes with big eyes, and point to the pair that makes them smile,” LuAnn Via says. “By helping families who struggle to provide their children with basic essentials on a daily basis, the Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club, in partnering with the Payless Gives Shoes 4 Kids program, hopes to relieve some of the stress parents feel during the holidays and bring joy to as many children as possible.”

For more information about the Akwesasne Boys & Girls Club, please call 518-358-9911.