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FSU Coach Sue Semrau to Coach Barefoot!
Posted on January 05, 2010

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Thousands of basketball coaches provide voice
for 300 million children
in honor of the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
 
Florida State Head Women’s Basketball Coach, Sue Semrau will
tip off the barefoot movement by coaching a game in her bare feet.
 
 “Barefoot for Bare feet” is a movement created
by Samaritan’s Feet
that has gained worldwide appeal and outreach. 
 

 

(INDIANAPOLIS, IN) –January 7, 2010 – Samaritan’s Feet announced a national launch of “Barefoot for Bare Feet” movement to honor the late Martin Luther King, Jr. Men’s and women’s basketball coaches will be encouraged to coach their games in their bare feet in remembrance of the 300 million children who wake up every day without shoes.
 
#11 Florida State Head Women’s Basketball Coach, Sue Semrau, will coach in her bare feet on January 7, 2010 at home against #21 Virginia. Coach Semrau will be joined this year by nearly 3,000 basketball coaches across the country from all levels of competition. IUPUI Head Basketball Coach Ron Hunter was the first coach to ever do this.  Now thousands of coaches will support their efforts to put a 1,000,000 pairs of shoes on the feet of children through Samaritan’s Feet.
 
“I am so proud of Coach Semrau and her efforts to provide a voice for the children who don’t have shoes and suffer every day,” said Manny Ohonme, President and Founder of Samaritan’s Feet. “Her efforts will impact thousands of children who she will never meet and her influence on other coaches to follow her lead will impact thousands more.”
 
The NCAA and NABC (National Association of Basketball Coaches) have partnered with Samaritan’s Feet this year to help reach a million children. The “Barefoot for Bare Feet” program will culminate at the 2010 Final Four, where the NCAA and its member schools and coaches will put shoes on the feet of thousands of children in Indianapolis.
 
Central to the alliance with the NCAA is the scheduled January 16th-National Barefoot Day, in which thousands of coaches will coach a game in their bare feet to raise awareness and support for the more than 300 million children globally who have never owned a pair of shoes.
 
 
History
In November of 2007, Samaritan’s Feet asked Ron Hunter, a college basketball coach, to take off his shoes and socks to raise 40,000 pairs of shoes and draw awareness to the world-wide issue of 300 million children without shoes. 
 
Coach Hunter said yes and embraced the goal of 40,000 pairs of shoes that he wanted donated by January 24th. In less than six weeks, his goal was blown out of the water. By tip-off Coach Hunter and Samaritan’s Feet had raised over 140,000 pairs of shoes and over $30,000.  The media exposure was incredible. Over 439 media outlets covered the story before and after he coached the game, including, ABC World News Tonight, CNN, ESPN, Sports Illustrated, USA Today, LA Times and many more. He also personally delivered the shoes with his team to Lima, Peru in August.
 
That singular effort has now led to a movement that is sweeping college campuses. Every day, coaches from around the country call Samaritan’s Feet to find out how they can help and are willing to shed their shoes. They are eager to use their celebrity platforms as coaches to help us reach our goal. Coaches are engaged with Samaritan’s Feet to help us reach our goal of distributing 10 million pairs of shoes to 10 million people in 10 years.
 
On January 16, 2010, Samaritan’s Feet will continue to honor the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, by once again asking all basketball coaches (college, pro, high school, junior high, and youth recreational and travel teams) to coach a game in their bare feet in honor of Dr. King who sacrificed so much for so many.  Coaches will be encouraged to coach the game in their bare feet as close to January 18th (MLK Day) as possible. Dr. King’s impact continues to be felt through his teachings of serving and helping the poor. Samaritan’s Feet embodies that mantra and lives it out everyday. Coaches will honor his life by standing for the 300 million children around the world who don’t have a voice. They suffer from diseases, infection and many other ailments because they don’t have shoes to wear. Needless to say, they can’t play sports without shoes.  
 
 
Confirmed Coaches
As a result of the success, nearly 3,000 basketball coaches are coaching a game in their bare feet. The National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) has endorsed Samaritan’s Feet and its quest to get every basketball coach in America to coach a game in their bare feet. 
  • Butler Coach Brad Stevens, Indiana State’s Kevin McKenna, South Dakota State’s Coach Scott Nagy, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Benny Moss, University Missouri KC Coach Matt Brown, and many more.
 
INTERESTED MEDIA:   For further press information or interest in Samaritan’s Feet, please contact Samaritan’s Feet Marketing Director, Todd Melloh at 317-417-3525 or tmelloh@samaritansfeet.org