Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Library District collecting shoes for needy children

Shoes for Snowmen

Jeff O'Brien

Four-year-old twins Madison, foreground, and Makayla Gellner are hard at work dressing their snowmen at the “Shoes for Snowmen” event at the Summerlin Library on Dec. 1.

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Lauren Poulios, 3, shows off her snowman at the "Shoes for Snowmen" event at the Summerlin Library on Dec. 1.

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Some of the snowmen on display at the "Shoes for Snowmen" event at the Summerlin Library on Dec. 1.

The Las Vegas-Clark County Library District's annual "Shoes for Children Drive" is under way, and in conjunction with the program the Summerlin Library hosted "Shoes for Snowmen" on Dec. 1.

A bulletin board adorned with snowmen was posted on a wall inside the library's story room and children of all ages dressed them in a variety of paper footwear ranging from cowboy boots to ballet slippers, sneakers and high heels.

Lauren Poulios, 3, spent a few minutes sorting through the different options before making her decision.

"I'm going to use ballet shoes. Those are my favorite," she said as she glued them onto the snowman's feet.

The goal of the event was to promote the Shoes for Children Drive, a program that began in 1994, said Karen Bramwell, spokeswoman for the Clark County Library District.

This year's drive began on Nov. 10.

"We are looking for new pairs of children's athletic shoes sized to fit preschoolers to high school youth," Bramwell said. "Last year, over 1,000 pairs of shoes were donated to children in need."

Each library in the Las Vegas-Clark County Library District is accepting shoes as well as monetary donations for the program.

Shoes will be donated to Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada, The Shade Tree and the Clark County Department of Family Services Child Haven, Bramwell said.

At the Summerlin Library, 10 boxes of new shoes had been donated as of Dec. 1, and youth librarian Jaime Chaffee said she hopes more will come in before the deadline on Dec. 19.

"We're keeping our fingers crossed," Chaffee said. "We put up a few more decorations and signs. Hopefully more people will notice."

After making sure their snowmen were dressed in the warmest possible clothing, 4-year-old twins Makayla and Madison Gellner proudly posted them on the wall.

"We dressed them in high heels," Makayla said.

Jeff O’Brien can be reached at 990-8957 or [email protected].

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