The Cyril Ross Nursery received an early Christmas gift for its children from Payless ShoeSource on Friday when it received 400 pairs of shoes at the company’s West Mall, Westmoorings branch.
The initiative was part of the company’s Payless Gives Shoes 4 Kids campaign, which is in its ninth year. The programme aims at helping children and families who are less fortunate and has provided shoes for thousands of needy children throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
“It is the most wonderful time of the year and a very special time for our staff at Payless because we get a chance to make so many children happy by giving our gift of shoes to those who need them most,” Payless ShoeSource general manager Jerus Mohammed said at the event.
“We anticipate this event as much as the children. For many families, new shoes are a luxury that they just cannot afford. It makes me very proud to be able to do our part to change this. This is our 9th year that we have chosen the Cyril Ross home to receive these shoes and we thank the management of the Nursery for undertaking the task of sharing these shoes with children from homes across Trinidad and Tobago and spreading the good cheer.”
Addressing the gathering, Cyril Ross Nursery manager Madonna Stewart-Morris said, “Christmas is a very joyful time of the year but for many families, there is nothing to celebrate, no gifts, no Christmas trees, no joy. We are grateful that for almost a decade now Payless ShoeSource has changed this for so many children, including those at our Cyril Ross Nursery. We do our very best to ensure that the children we look after are well provided for but the generosity of our friends at Payless goes a long way to making a very Merry Christmas for so many children not just at our nursery but all over the country and we would like to take this opportunity to thank them.”
Sharon Rowley, wife of Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley, was on hand at the event and helped some of the children pick out their new shoes.