Red, White and Brauen delivers more than 350 pairs of shoes to Dubois County kids

*Octagon President Carson Powell and former member Isabella Harmon demonstrated how to tie one’s shoes for a student.*

Dinosaurs, butterflies, blinking lights, cool Cons, and high-speed kicks hopped, walked and skipped into the halls of Jasper Elementary School this morning as more than a hundred students received a new pair of shoes.

With support from the Optimist Club of Jasper and its Jasper High School counterpart, Octagon, as well as from volunteers with the Red, White and Brauen Music Festival and Shoe Sensation, each child was able to pick out whatever shoes they liked after being checked for the proper size.

This is the fifth year the groups have worked together to supply the new shoes. This year, more than 350 pairs will be donated among all four Dubois County School Corporations.

“Yesterday we had a young man that came out and he was so happy and he said, ‘Thank you, I look forward to getting a pair of shoes that don’t have a hole in them,'” said Committee Chair Jay Baker.

Baker explained that all proceeds from the annual Country Music Festival are used in Dubois County for this event. In addition to the shoes, the group has used funds to address a range of needs for veterans.

*JHS Junior Joselyn Miranda, a member of Octagon, helped a student with her new shoes.*

“We’ve supplied a service dog to a veteran here in Dubois County,” Baker explained, adding that they don’t publicize these needs to protect the dignity of those needing help.

In recent years, veterans have pushed the group to support the children’s shoes program.

*Christine Lund, Regional Marketing Manager for Shoe Sensation, helped size children’s feet before they picked out shoes.*

According to Christine Lund, Regional Marketing Manager for Shoe Sensation, who was on hand to take foot measurements for the children, the company will have distributed more than $10,000 in shoes at this year’s event.

Carson Powell, the president of the Octagon Club, spent the morning helping children find new pairs of shoes. He picked through the boxes, revealing the pairs of shoes to the yays and nays of his partners before helping them try them on.

It was his first time helping with the event.

“It’s fun seeing what they like and what styles are popular,” he explained. “But also, these kids are so appreciative. They’re just so excited to have another pair of shoes. They are purely grateful.”