Over the weekend, more than 2,000 North Texas children were offered a new pair of shoes along with encouragement.
Twelve North Texas churches and organizations organized volunteers to work with the charity Samaritan's Feet.
The nonprofit works to inspire hope through the gift of shoes, the act of washing feet, and by giving some much-needed encouragement to children.
"Sometimes we treat our children as they are simply victims. The reality is that our children are our leaders. Today we want to inspire our leaders to lead us into the future," said Dr. Kwesi Kamau, pastor of Impact Church DFW.
Each child left with a new pair of shoes and socks, but the hope is they will spend some quality time talking with the volunteers about their lives and dreams.
"These kids need to know they are special and they are loved. We need to continue as a community, as the village, to surround our children and give them the hope that they need," Kamau said.
Twelve-year-old Steven Casey spent his morning with Samaritan's Feet founder Manny Ohonme.
The two talked about Steven's favorite school subject — math — and his future.
"I want to go to the Navy," Steven said. "I'd really like to serve my country."
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Then, the two prayed together.
"I'm trying to pay it forward, because somebody made a difference in my life," Ohonme said.
Ohonme grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, and received his first pair of shoes and some words of hope from a missionary. Thirty years later, he started the organization to inspire that same hope and faith in other children.
MORE: Click to learn more about the charity Samaritan's Feet
