![\"kimshoedrive\"](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/kimshoedrive.jpg\")
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Image courtesy of Kim Holistic Foot & Ankle Center.<\/em><\/p>\n For the past six years,13-year-old Monica Hyndman has been collecting shoes for those in need in Long Beach. Hyndman is the number one shoe collector of the drive and spreads awareness for the cause during her regular school year.<\/p>\n The teenager was in Guatemala when she noticed a girl walking down the street without shoes, when it sparked an empathetic response. When she returned home to California, she decided to do something about it.<\/p>\n \u201cMy mom told me about the Shoe Drive that Kim Holistic Foot & Ankle Center organizes every year in Long Beach,\u201d Hyndman stated. \u201cIt was a great opportunity to join a great team and start to donate. It is a wonderful feeling to help others.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMonica is our #1 shoe collector,\u201d stated Dr. S. Don Kim, who started the shoe drive. \u201cShe involved her friends and family and together they collected more than 8,000 pairs of shoes. She is making the announcement at her school so kids can bring shoes that they no longer need.\u201d<\/p>\n This year, participants have already donated 1,000 pairs of shoes and counting to the center, the result of Kim\u2019s decision to start collecting shoes from his colleagues in 1997 to help those in need in Mexico and Los Angeles.<\/p>\n \u201cIt started as a vision,\u201d Kim stated. \u201cWhile doing free podiatry care for the impoverished areas of Mexico, I noticed that many of the foot problems suffered by these patients could have been eliminated if they just had the proper protection \u2014 shoes!\u201d<\/p>\n To celebrate this year\u2019s shoe drive, Kim Holistic Foot & Ankle Center will host a Shoe Drive Health Fair at 11:00AM on Saturday, August 20. Attendees are welcome to bring their gently used shoes to the event or drop them off before then.<\/p>\n \u201cThe purpose of the shoe drive has also been that no person, regardless of age, race, gender, or income level, be without a decent pair of shoes,\u201d Kim stated. \u201cOur 19th Shoe Drive is going strong and we look forward to your donation. We are planning to collect 20,000 pairs of shoes this year.”<\/p>\n![\"a6a834a5-a8cb-4773-98d1-5585ba0fe11b\"](\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/06\/a6a834a5-a8cb-4773-98d1-5585ba0fe11b.jpg\")
Kim Holistic Foot & Ankle Center has started its 19th Annual Shoe Drive, one of the largest of its kind in the city. The center has brought the Long Beach community together for nearly 20 years for the sake of helping those a little less fortunate.<\/p>\n