In 2007, our founder Kenton Lee traveled to Nairobi, Kenya after graduating college. He lived and worked at a small orphanage with some incredible kids. One day, he was walking down a dusty road with all the kids when he noticed a little girl in a white dress walking next to him. As he looked down at her feet, he was shocked to see how small her shoes were. They were so small that she had to cut open the front of her shoes to let her toes stick out. That was the day that Kenton thought:

What if there was a shoe that could adjust and expand its size?

What if there was a shoe that could grow?

And the idea for The Shoe That Grows™ was born.

It took Kenton and a group of friends back in their hometown in Idaho more than six years to take this idea and turn it into a reality. But they finally did it; they made The Shoe That Grows—a shoe that grows five sizes and lasts for years.

They started the nonprofit organization Because International™ to serve as the structure to get The Shoe That Grows to as many kids as possible who are in desperate need of footwear to protect their feet. This was always meant to be a small hobby for Kenton and his friends. It was something they were passionate about, but they never dreamed it would be the worldwide cause and movement that it is today.