About 20-30% of the children in rural Ethiopia do not wear shoes - not because they don't want to, but because their parents are poor and simply cannot afford them.  This exposes their little feet to a wide variety of dangers and can result in many diseases.  We would like to mention just 2:

Non-filarial elephantiasis is caused due to the vulnerability of the body to infectious agents, such as harmful chemicals. In tropical and sub-tropical areas such as Africa and Asia, most people in rural areas travel barefoot. This causes them to come in contact with alkali metals in the soil such as sodium and potassium, which move upwards to cause an infection of the lymph system. Besides chemical irritants in the soil, elephantiasis is also transmitted through mosquitoes and worms. (1)

Ulcers occur on exposed parts of the body, primarily on the feet and may erode muscles and tendons sometimes even the bones. These lesions may frequently develop on preexisting abrasions or sores, sometimes beginning from a mere scratch. Tropical ulcers are also known as "Aden Ulcer," "Jungle Rot," "Malabar Ulcer," and "Tropical Phagedena". (2)

We urgently need to do something about this.  By simply giving a poor child a pair of shoes, we can play a big role in the prevention of these terrible diseases. I recently saw a quote, "If you think you are too small to make a difference, try going to sleep in a room with a mosquito."  We can indeed make a huge difference in the children's lives - one pair of shoes at a time!

We thought about the best way to help the children of Ethiopia and found that importing used shoes into Ethiopia is not an option because they are taxed so heavily.  When we combine that with the high shipping costs, it is just not worth it. However, we found a great solution:

For only $19 you can give a brand new pair of quality leather shoes,  manufactured directly in Ethiopia by local shoemakers. It would be the same quality as a good pair you would buy at the mall - the kind you would want your child to wear.

With each donation of $19 for a pair of shoes you will achieve the following:

1. You protect little feet from being exposed to terrible soil-born diseases; 
2. You help to put food on an Ethiopian shoemakers table; 
3. You empower local pastors to make a real difference in their community;
4. You help Cita Ministries cover their distribution and outreach expenses.

We ensure that at least 84% of every dollar given to B-A-R-E-FOOT actually gets to the mission field

(1) http://www.hxbenefit.com/elephantiasis-elephantitis-pictures-symptoms-causes-and-treatment.html) (2) http://pediaview.com/openpedia/Tropical_ulcer