Post by Chad Houck, GivMusic Blog Contributor: Chad is the co-founder and director of World Wins International.  You can follow Chad and his family on their travels at http://share5.org.

In 2007 my wife and I had the pleasure of taking a two week trip to Ghana, West Africa to do some speaking.  On our arrival, we asked about the possibility of hiking Krobo Mountain, the area where the tribal natives used to live.  The first mile or so was fairly flat, but I had heard that the terrain at the top was a bit more challenging.  I debated if my Asics running shoes were appropriate, or if my Asolo waterproof cross-hikers might be the better choice with their more aggressive tread.  On the day of our hike, I noticed two of our guides had only leather strap sandals with flat, smooth soles.  One person was wearing the same shoes they had worn to church, yet I was the one who felt overdressed.

Last week I was down in Mexico on a missions trip with an American team of High School students.  We were doing construction work, so in the morning, I got up, crawled out of my sleeping bag, and laced up my Vibram-soled steel-reinforced work boots to hit the job site.  After a good hard day of kicking shovels and dropping hammers on my feet, I returned to the campsite and slid my toes out of my boots and into a pair of slightly more comfortable Converse All-Stars.  Later that night, I ditched my Cons for my Crocs sandals to trudge to the shower.

Before you label me a “retifist” (a person with an irrational shoe fetish), allow me to share what has my soul all fixated on my soles.

While the African instance stuck in my head for a while, the Mexico scenario didn’t so much as make me even bat an eye until earlier this week.  That is when I saw a day on my calendar that I had committed to “take a walk” in another’s shoes.  Technically, it would be more accurate to say that I had agreed to walk in their lack of shoes.  April 8^th is the date for the TOMS Shoes national “One Day Without Shoes” campaign, and a day that both my wife and I, despite a corporate shareholder’s meeting and a handful of appointments, will go through with nothing on our feet.  It is the day where we will make an effort to better grasp how the less fortunate in this world live, work, and play – barefoot.

In many developing nations, both children and adults must daily walk many miles for water, food, or medical attention.  Adults may suffer scrapes from work in the fields.  Some children are not allowed to attend schools for lack of footwear.  Others simply can’t attend because of sickness and disease resulting from infected cuts on their bare feet.

In Ethiopia today, approximately one million people suffer from a disease known as Podoconiosis, a debilitating and disfiguring, yet completely curable disease caused by walking barefoot on volcanic soils.  The sharp clay cuts the soles of the feet, impregnating them with small pieces of silica and causing lymphatic disease and severe, incapacitating swelling.  Prevention is as simple as a pair of shoes coupled to some basic hygiene.

So what can YOU do about it?  Start with awareness and ACTION.  Join me by going barefoot on April 8^th, whether for an hour or the day.  Go to the One Day Without Shoes website and educate yourself, then either join an event in your area or host one of your own.  You may even want to buy a pair of TOMS shoes to slide your tired, bare feet into at the end of the day.

Last Christmas, TOMS provided over 37,000 pairs of shoes to children in Ethiopia to help prevent Podoconiosis.  They were able to do so because of 37,000 people that either bought or gave TOMS as gifts during the Christmas season.  For every pair of  TOMS they sell, they give a pair away, One for One.  Perhaps they should be your next pair of shoes?

Don’t have the dough to go out and buy you and a your new friend on the other side of the world a new pair of kicks?  No worries! You could always offer him or her a pair of your gently used ones by donating them to Soles 4 Souls (www.Soles4Souls.org), a charity that is giving away a pair of new or gently used shoes every 9 seconds.

Find a shoe drop-off location near you at http://www.soles4souls.org/about/locations.html

 A GivStory by Cathy Robinson | Franklin, TN

Have you ever been changed by helping others in need?  Do you ever feel you have nothing to offer?  Are you held back by thoughts like “what could I possibly do?”  Here is a testimony of a family who put legs to what God spoke to their hearts and has experienced His blessings in return. 

 “My husband, Ronny, is a businessman and I (Cathy) recently obtained my degree in Spanish.  We have one daughter, Courtney, who is 24, and a son Michael, who is 16.  We reside on a farm in Franklin, Tennessee, a 160 acre retreat called “Rancho El Paso.”  The name was inspired by the Lord a couple of years before we were introduced to Rancho Los Amigos just across the border from El Paso, Texas!  The children from Rancho Los Amigos are always surprised when they visit and see our sign at the entrance.

Although our church is very involved in missions and evangelism, our first mission trip outside of the country was with our daughter’s school in 1997.  We had supported Youth With a Mission over the years, but had never been to any of the operating locations until then.  That is when we first became involved with Rancho Los Amigos.  On that trip we helped build a home, did some evangelism, and visited the children.

Cathy pictured with the children of Ranco El Paso

When we returned home, we began to sponsor one of the boys we had met there.  He really stole our hearts!  During the summer, he came to stay with us for 6 weeks.  Then at Christmas, he and his brother spent 3 weeks with us.  Shortly afterward, their mother was released from prison and their family was reunited.  Later, I had a dream about (continue reading…)

A GivStory by Mark Schultz

A few summers ago I was contacted by Family Christian Stores’ Foundation,  The James Fund. A non-profit organization dedicated to meeting the needs of orphans and widows around the world. They contacted me because I was also adopted and they thought that I would make a good spokesperson for the organization. They took me down to an orphanage in Mexico and there I met a husband and wife team that started an organization called Back 2 Back. They were the hands and feet for the churches and orphanages in the area, providing them with food and education.  I will never forget one of the girls there. She was giving us a lesson about kids and orphans.  During this lesson, she took out an ordinary piece of paper and asked us to visualize the paper being an orphan’s heart. She said children come to the orphanage and they are not like any of the other kids in their community. She then rips the piece of paper in half and says “now you are working with just this half piece.” She then explains that the children will want to go to school, but they don’t have the money.  She then rips off another piece of the paper. She gives several examples until she is left holding a piece of paper the size of a thumb print and says “this is what orphans’ heart will typically look like.” She said that each time we give to these orphans we are investing another little piece of paper back into their hearts.  

I thought to myself  “What can I do to make a difference?” I’m adopted and I have a heart for kids….

A few years ago my wife rode her bicycle across the country and I had always admired her for that. I thought that maybe I could ride my bike to help raise money for some of the kids I had seen. So, I called up my manager and told him my crazy idea. Before I knew it I was riding my bike across the country all the way from California to New Hampshire playing thirteen concerts along the way. At the end of the eight week tour we were able to raise a quarter of a million dollars. It was one of the greatest feelings of my life!

I have been doing music professionally for over ten years and I would call giving money to kids that really need it the highlight of my career.

 Most of the money that we raised went to the The James Fund orphanages, but some of the money was also given to World Vision. From my relationship with The James Fund I started to learn more about World Vision. I soon realized that they were also working within organizations and helping kids, orphans, and families. I thought “what a great ministry… I want to get involved.” I thought that I could help by playing concerts and helping to get children sponsored all over the world. It’s been an amazing journey. I was in the Dominican Republic a few months ago and was invited to a World Vision building that housed children with AIDS. The children were drawing on pieces of paper and smiling. Not quite the vision that comes to mind when you think about AIDS, but there they were smiling and happy. One of the teachers asked the students if anyone wanted to volunteer to sing a song.  A little girl began to sing a beautiful song in Spanish. The song translated in English says “God I Love You More Than My Own Life.”  When they translated it for me I was just floored because I realized that with AIDS, she didn’t know how long she had to live. I also found out that this child had an amazing dream, to become a doctor!  I immediately called my wife, who is a doctor, and told her about this sweet little girl. Her immediate response was “Go get her!”  So, of course we immediately signed up to become her sponsor family and are an active part of her life through sponsorship, letters, and encouragement.  I am honored to have the opportunity to be a part of her life  and to be a fan and advocate for a great organization like World Vision . I can’t think of anything in life that is more rewarding than giving hope to others in need.

To learn more visit:

World Vision www.worldvision.org

Mark Schutlz  www.markschultzmusic.com

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