Arshawn Rupert, a member of the Boys & Girls Club of Elgin, grabbed a box with Nike Kyrie basketball shoes from the shelf of Dick’s Sporting Goods in Geneva without checking the size.
A volunteer from the Realtor Association of the Fox Valley helped the 9-year-old open the box and try on the white basketball shoes with a red accent.
They fit perfectly.
Arshawn was one of a handful of the club’s Summer Running Club members who completed a 5-kilometer run and earned a new pair of shoes donated by the Realtor Association, which sponsored the running club and attended practices and offered rewards for reaching different running milestones.
“We asked what the BGC needed most from our partnership, and the answer, surprisingly, was shoes,” Betty Ebert-Rylko, president-elect and co-chairperson of the Community Outreach Committee for Realtor Association of the Fox Valley, said in a news release. “The kids in the club needed shoes. They would often run barefoot or not participate at all because they did not own the appropriate footwear.”
More than 200 pairs of new and gently used athletic shoes were delivered at the beginning of the Summer Running Club, and the contest to complete a 5K was launched. The promised shopping trip for those who did was Aug. 26. The store offered discounts to the Realtor Association, which raised money for the new shoes at its annual golf outing.
“We are happy to help and are honored to be selected as the shopping destination for this wonderful program for the Boys and Girls Club of Elgin,” said Brian Dibbert, community marketing manager for Dick’s.
Abigail Casas, 11, of Elgin, really pushed herself to complete the 5K, said Todd Peterson, the club’s running coach.
“The last day, two make the 5K, and it about killed them, but they kept going,” he said.
The running club’s membership grew from 52 last year to 121, according to the news release. Each member received new or lightly used shoes at the beginning of the summer and got such prizes as water bottles and T-shirts as their running progressed. Members ran a total of 465 miles this summer, and all members ran at least 1 mile, the release stated.
Abigail picked out a black pair of Nike shoes that she said she’s been wanting for a long time. Running the 5K was “kind of hard,” she said. But “it’s great exercise, I guess.”
“The Boys and Girls (Club) partnership has been an incredibly rewarding experience for the Realtor Association of the Fox Valley,” association President Barb Schori said in the release. “All of our members have rallied to help these kids. Whether they donated shoes, attended the golf outing or volunteered at the Boys and Girls Club cheering on the runners, it has become a way for everyone to work together toward a common goal.”
Gloria Casas is a freelance reporter for The Courier-News.