Edison Employees Donate New Shoes That Fit the Holiday Season

The spirit of giving touches underprivileged students at local schools in La Puente and Rosemead.
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Stories : Giving Back
Stories : Giving Back

Edison Employees Donate New Shoes That Fit the Holiday Season

The spirit of giving touches underprivileged students at local schools in La Puente and Rosemead.
Contributors
Photo Credit: Elisa Ferrari

LA PUENTE, Calif.—The fun began with a loud countdown chant.

TEN! NINE! EIGHT! SEVEN! SIX! FIVE! FOUR! THREE! TWO! ONE!

Screams quickly filled the cafeteria at Temple Academy in La Puente where students barely contained their excitement as they tore through gift-wrapped boxes containing new athletic shoes donated by employees of Southern California Edison and Edison International, parent company of SCE. 

Edison employees partner with nonprofit Shoes That Fit and donate shoes to kids in need.
Students at Temple Academy enjoy shoes donated by Edison employees.

“Look at the shoes I have,” squealed Angelica, 5. “They’re Rainbow Magic, they’re red on the bottom, and they’re soft and furry. I just love them.”

With a little adult help, she wasted no time removing the pair on her feet and slipping on her new shoes. “They feel good,” she said, smiling.

Five-year-old Daniel’s new shoes lit up and changed colors when he walked. “They light up when it’s dark!” he exclaimed.

Across the room, Paul, 11, couldn’t stop staring at his sleek black sneakers. “I love them.” 

Edison employees partner with nonprofit Shoes That Fit and donate shoes to kids in need.
Students at Temple Academy open boxes filled with their new shoes.

This holiday season, Edison employees celebrated the spirit of giving by donating 309 pairs of new athletic shoes to underprivileged students at two local elementary schools.

Organizers worked with community school partners established through Shoes That Fit, a nonprofit committed to giving children in need new shoes so they can attend school with dignity and joy.

A total of 265 pairs of new footwear — one for each student — were recently handed out to children at Temple Academy. A second Edison shoe donation campaign resulted in 44 pairs of shoes gifted to students in need at Encinita Elementary School in Rosemead.

“A lot of these children have one pair of shoes. Others wear hand-me-downs,” said Marie Sadowski, an executive assistant with Edison International. “This is all about the spirit of giving, being able to give back.”

“Each year we do this it’s made me realize a pair of shoes can bring happiness and excitement to kids,” said Vanessa Kuns, an SCE advisor in Ethics and Compliance, who organized the Temple Academy shoe donation with Linda Liu, an SCE Audits advisor. “It’s amazing and heart-warming.” 

Edison employees partner with nonprofit Shoes That Fit and donate shoes to kids in need.
Edison employees partner with nonprofit Shoes That Fit and donate shoes to kids in need.

This time of year is about giving back, especially when so much is given to you. I grew up in the neighborhood, not far from here. It’s a tremendous and incredible feeling to see joy on the kids’ faces. They’re so thankful and so appreciative.” 

Mike Montoya, Edison International Vice President

Students’ feet were measured and their shoe size, name, gender and age were forwarded to Edison organizers. Next, they sent emails and posted announcements across the company asking employees to donate.  

New shoes typically are given to students identified as most in need by their teachers. However, it’s become increasingly difficult to decide which students get shoes because the need has become so great.

“We wanted to be of value to the kids. Eighty percent of them are on some kind of assistance,” said Phyllis Gonzalez, an executive assistant for Edison International, who led the Encinita Elementary School shoe donation campaign.

Shoes That Fit - 2018
Edison employees partner with nonprofit Shoes That Fit and donate shoes to kids in need.

Mary Castner, principal at Temple Academy, said she’s appreciative of Edison employees’ generous donations. “We had tears in our eyes when they said they wanted to donate shoes to every student this year,” she said.

Mike Montoya, vice president and chief Ethics and Compliance officer for Edison International, handed out shoes at Temple Academy. For him, the students’ smiles and thank-yous reflected the true gift of giving.

“This time of year is about giving back, especially when so much is given to you,” he said. “I grew up in the neighborhood, not far from here. It’s a tremendous and incredible feeling to see joy on the kids’ faces. They’re so thankful and so appreciative.”