Gamecocks Exceed Goal in Shoe Drive for Boys & Girls Clubs of the Midlands
Having the chance to walk in someone else’s shoes can really be a good thing. South Carolina football fifth-year senior Spencer Eason-Riddle recently spearheaded a shoe drive, asking fellow student-athletes and staff to donate lightly worn shoes and cleats to the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Midlands so they can be used by area middle or high school students. The Gamecocks came through in a big way with 135 pairs of athletics footwear that were handed over on Friday.
Spencer Eason-Riddle
“It was a huge blessing to see the response from the student-athletes and even the (Athletics) staff,” said Eason-Riddle, who is a member of South Carolina’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. “I sent out a massive email to a lot of the staff in the Rice (Athletics Center) and the Dodie (Anderson Academic Enrichment Center) building that work with all sorts of different sports. I think I got a good response from that.
”I think it was a cool way to get everyone involved and help serve the community. My goal was to tape up 100 pairs of shoes and donate them to this Boys & Girls Club, and we ended up with 135 (pairs). We’re really fortunate and really blessed to have that many shoes come in.”
The Boys & Girls Club will distribute the shoes to various children that they work with and will also reach out to other agencies as well.
“We’re going to distribute this to our middle school programs as well as our teen programs,” said Troy Thames, Executive Director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Midlands. “We have other partnerships that we will be working with as well that will potentially get cleats behind the fence at the DJJ (Department of Juvenile Justice), and also with some of the (students) in Richland School District One.
“These cleats and shoes will be instrumental in those athletes that, every season, are in need of cleats and shoes. Their foot grew and maybe they need a new pair. You’re looking at an extra $100 every year for a pair. So, we’ll be able to assist them with that. The athletic shoes and tennis shoes will be able to help some of our non-athletes as well.”
“This helps tremendously. Thank you so much to Spencer and to Connor Shaw for initiating this.”
– Troy Thames, Exec. Dir. of Boys & Girls Clubs of the Midlands
When Eason-Riddle first came up with the idea, it was former Gamecock quarterback and current Director of Football Relations Connor Shaw who put him in touch with Thames.
Thames (left) with Boys & Girls Club Staff and Eason-Riddle.
“This helps tremendously,” Thames said. “Thank you so much to Spencer and to Connor Shaw for initiating this.”
Eason-Riddle is no stranger to putting his best foot forward in the community and is South Carolina’s male nominee for the SEC Community Service Award. He is the founder of “Sandstorm Buddies,” an initiative with the Prisma Health Children’s Hospital, which coordinates times for student-athletes to visit and interact with patients. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Spencer created holiday projects and gift package requests for patients. He is a three-time member of the SEC Football Community Service Team, the only Gamecock ever named to the 22-man Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.
The COVID-19 pandemic prevented some face-to-face service interactions that he has enjoyed in the past, and Eason-Riddle was glad his fellow student-athletes and staff jumped on his latest service venture.
“This was kind of spur of the moment thing for me because most of my work is done in hospitals or right down the street with the South Carolina Oncology Associates with the adult cancer patients,” Eason-Riddle said. “COVID kind of sprung up and this was something we could still do. Who knows, maybe we will have another shoe drive like this in the future.”
