Wittenberg Women's Basketball Head Coach Sarah Jurewicz with orphans in Lesotho in 2010
Provided photo
Springfield, Ohio — When Wittenberg University Women's Basketball Head Coach Sarah Jurewiczwalks into Pam Evans Smith Arena for a pivotal North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) game against Allegheny at 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 4, she will be wearing a favorite pair of shoes. Just before tip-off, however, Jurewicz will remove them in an effort to raise awareness of the plight of millions of children around the world.
Jurewicz is one of 45 basketball coaches across the country participating in "Barefoot for Bare Feet," which is raising money for Samaritan's Feet, a humanitarian relief organization dedicated to improving the lives of children by providing them with proper shoes. It is estimated that as many as 300 million people are without shoes each day, and as a result as many as 1 million people die each year due to foot-borne illnesses.
Jurewicz originally set a goal to raise $500, but after announcing "Barefoot for Bare Feet" to the campus community via email on Jan. 27, she quickly surpassed that total. She now hopes to surpass $1,000, which would be used to purchase 100 pairs of shoes for children in need.
Contributions can be made online
"Athletics provides such a visible vehicle through which we can raise awareness and advocate for important causes," said Jurewicz, a member of the Board of Directors of BLOOM Africa, a non-profit organization founded by her close friend, Andrew Steele, class of 2010, to provide resources to orphaned children in the African kingdom of Lesotho. "To know that millions of children (more than 300 million, according to estimates) go without shoes on a daily basis is unfortunate, but what is more unfortunate is if we have the power to make a simple gesture to help put shoes on those children's feet but don't do anything about it.
"After spending time with kids in Lesotho, many of whom don't have shoes, I understand the real need to provide hope for them by simply providing them with shoes."
The fundraising effort is part of a busy weekend for the Tiger women's basketball program, which evened its 2011-12 record at 9-9 overall and 5-5 in the NCAC with an 85-59 victory over Ohio Wesleyan on Tuesday, Jan. 31. On Friday, the Tigers will host their annual Women's Basketball Coaches Association Play 4 Kay event (formerly known as Pink Zone), which raises awareness and funds for cancer research, during a game against Hiram.
The next day, all 12 Wittenberg women's athletics teams will participate in Wittenberg's annual National Girls and Women in Sports Day expo from noon-2 p.m. in the HPER Center Gymnasium. Some of the women's basketball players will be coming to the expo after playing in the program's annual Alumnae Game, which tips off at 11 a.m. Expo participants will receive free admission into the game at 3 p.m.
Written By: Ryan Maurer
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