The impact of shoes on confidence and self-esteem
Japheth Opondo, East Africa distribution partner, shares his first hand experience seeing how The Shoe That Grows provides dignity and self-confidence.
Our top 10 moments of 2025
2025 was a tremendous year for Because International—from the production and first distributions of the newest version of The Shoe That Grows to hitting the amazing milestone of 500,000 pairs distributed to the first visit to the US of long time team member Japheth Opondo. Enjoy our 2025 year in review photo book featuring our top 10 memories.
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January 2025—40K pairs of our new version of The Shoe That Grows funded for distribution in Kenya!
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February 2025—We did our first ever product distribution combining The Shoe That Grows with a product of a Because Fellow. That product was the SeatPack made by Zetu Africa.
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March 2025—Our annual campaign for Shoe The World Day funded 1,631 pairs of The Shoe That Grows distributed through our partner Swahiba Networks.
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April 2025—The Because Fellowship, a small cohort of select Because Accelerator Alumni, launched. These social entrepreneurs receive mentorship, community and funding opportunities to help them grow their social enterprises and distribute more products to communities in need.
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July 2025—We hit the amazing milestone of 500,000 pairs of The Shoe That Grows distributed to kids worldwide.
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August 2025—The new version of The Shoe That Grows hit the point in production that we were able to switch to exclusively distributing it in Kenya for $10 per pair.
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September 2025—The Shoes For School campaign was the biggest and most success yet funding 13,019 pairs for kids in Busia County, Kenya.
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October 2025—Long-time team member from Kenya, Japheth Opondo, was able to travel to the United States for the first time to visit Because International's Idaho headquarters, meet the full team and speak at an event.
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November 2025—Alturas hosted Impact From Idaho, an event to bring awareness about the mission and vision of Because International to Treasure Valley businesses and community members.
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November 2025—Operation Christmas Child participants purchased more pairs of The Shoe That Grows to send in Christmas shoeboxes than ever before—more than 30,000 pairs—extending the impact of their gifts for years to come.
