31-05-2025
Teaming up to provide shoes for students
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) — The South Dakota State Track and Field meet has taken over Howard Wood Field in Sioux Falls.
Whether kids are racing on a track, running on a basketball court, or simply going to school, a good pair of shoes is important.
Vermillion High Schooler Jacob Fischer was getting ready run at state track Friday afternoon.
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The 17-year-old was warming up in a pair of shoes he received last fall for free.
'My shoes were pretty beat up, so I was given new shoes and felt a lot better in them,' Fischer said.
Fischer got the shoes through Tanager Feet Forward, a fund started by Vermillion head track and field coach Lenni Billberg.
The fund provides footwear for middle and high school students in the Vermillion School District.
'I have a closet full of shoes. They come to me, tell me what size, we try them on, and they get a new pair of shoes,' Billberg said.
Now, Tanager Feet Forward is getting some help from another shoe mission called Kelcy's Kicks.
Jenny Orr and her late husband started the fund after their daughter Kelcy, a runner, died of fentanyl poisoning.
The money helps provide athletic shoes to students.
'I have such wonderful memories of my daughter on this track, and I know how much joy that gave her and how much joy that gave me and my husband. I want to share that joy,' Orr said.
By teaming up, the two missions can do more for students.
'Because of Kelcy's Kicks' addition, we can now buy shoes for any sport kid who needs it. We can buy shoes for kids that are going out into the workforce. We can really do anything for our kids that need it,' Billberg said.
If you'd like to donate, click here.
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