TOMS KU club to promote awareness

By Kirsten Kwon

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Cherie Gossett, Olathe junior, first heard about the TOMS movement while watching a segment on a morning TV show last April. She said she was instantly intrigued by the report. “I thought ‘Wow, what an inspirational way of making an impact,’” Gossett said.

When she visited the Web site for the organization, which is dedicated to giving shoes to impoverished people around the world, she noticed they were looking for campus representatives and decided the University needed an organization to support the cause.

“I applied over the summer and got the job as a representative,” Gossett said. “Then I had to go through registration for it to become an actual campus group.”

This is the first semester for the TOMS Shoes University of Kansas group. For every pair of shoes purchased from the company, it gives away a pair of shoes to a child in need as part of its “One for One” program. According to tomsshoes.com, the organization has successfully given away over 140,000 pairs of shoes to children in developing countries like Argentina, South Africa and Ethiopia.

Gossett said the movement is important because, for some, walking is the main mode of transportation.

“You don’t really think about it but in some countries people have to walk to get everywhere, and sometimes they are walking barefoot through dangerous things like contaminated soil,” Gossett said.

The 16 members of the KU organization will plan events to raise awareness about the cause.

“We will work to throw two major events on campus each semester,” Gossett said.

Since TOMS was launched in 2006, it has become a cultural trend. The bands Hanson and Hellogoodbye are supporting the cause with their “Use your Sole” tour and will play at the Beaumont Club in Kansas City Oct. 2. In addition to the concert, Hanson will lead participants in a one-mile walk with the “Take the Walk” campaign, an organization that is partners with TOMS.

Gossett said she hopes to begin planning the events soon to get the word out around campus.

“Our main goal is to help children in need in the world and get KU students to support TOMS” Gossett said.

TOMS shoes are available on its website and in Shark’s Surf Shop, 813 Massachusetts St. For information on joining the organization or receiving a $5 off KU student code, contact representatives at tomskulawrence@gmail.com

— -Edited by Jonathan Hermes

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