Shoes, Shoes and More Shoes

I arrived in Entebbe late Tuesday (1/19) and was greeting by our Ugandan team members. It was great to be reunited in this beautiful country. I was struck again by how dark the night is here, even as you enter the capital. As we maneuvered through the pothole strewn streets toward the capital city of Kampala, I was gripped by a sense of the need all around me. I am so proud to represent Crosspointe in this missional partnership with the Uganda Children's Project.

My main task for my first full day in Uganda was to meet with the production and sales manager at Bata, the local shoe manufacturer. Bata shoes are consider among the best in Africa and they have a division that specializes in shoes for students. They also are the most costly which is why we have not partnered with them in the past. We met a gentleman by the name of John who took us on a tour of the Bata facilities and shared the company's vision for helping the less fortunate among them. When we told him what we have been doing with the Uganda Christmas Shoe Project, he was immediately interested in partnering with us. In order to do that, he reduced his shoe prices by over 50%! We are so excited to be able to offer these high-quality shoes to these kids! We purchased 820 pairs of shoes and socks to distribute in the next week.
Later today we will take delivery of 600 pairs and begin the process of counting, lacing and dividing by sizes. I'll try and keep you up to date as we move forward!