Over the years, Birkat Hashem volunteers have unfortunately been witness to almost impossible circumstances, including heartrending situations where ill-fitting shoes caused serious health consequences.
Footwear
All too often, men and teenagers are condemned to suffer the ongoing pain of wearing uncomfortable shoes, occasionally even causing long-term damage, solely because they don't have the means to purchase good-quality footwear.
The Talmud teaches that a person should sell the beams of his house to buy shoes (Shabbat 129). What about a person who doesn't own a house? What should a family struggling to get by on a daily basis do?
When a person wears new, comfortable, high-quality shoes, he feels that he is standing on firm grounds, in all senses of the term.
Not for nothing did the sages include shoes in the morning blessing of She'Asah Li Kol Tzorki – thanking Hashem for providing us with all our needs. A person wearing decent shoes indeed feels like all his needs have been met.
The Birkat Hashem volunteers follow this approach when they arrange a high-quality shoe distribution for needy families. After conducting a thorough market analysis, they select the most reputable companies, offering the longest guarantee, most up-to-date designs and uncompromising quality. They then order a huge selection of shoes in a range of styles and sizes, so that every person can leave the hall feeling that the shoes he has just picked were ordered especially for him!
All his needs – from head to toe!
