Feb. 4, 2011

PHILADELPHIA - La Salle University Head Men's Basketball Coach Dr. John Giannini will coach in his bare feet on February 5 at home against Dayton at 6 p.m. The Barefoot Coaching Movement started in 2007 when IUPUI Coach Ron Hunter coached a game in his bare feet to raise awareness for the plight of impoverished children who suffer needlessly from foot-borne disease and infections due to a lack of shoes. This year Giannini will join Coach Hunter and more than 1,000 coaches across the country by stepping out on the court barefoot to help raise funding and awareness for the more than 300 million children who wake up each morning without a proper pair of shoes to put on their feet.

During the game, announcements will be made to encourage fans to donate to help Samaritan's Feet reach its goal of distributing 10 million pairs of shoes in 10 years.

Fans can help support Giannini by texting the word SHOES to 85944 and a one-time gift of $10 will automatically be added to their cell phone bill. That $10 allows Samaritan's Feet to buy and ship a pair of shoe anywhere around the world. Donations can also be made online at www.samaritansfeet.org.

"I was deeply gratified last year when individuals pledged money or shoes because of a very small act on my part," Giannini said. "One person donated 100 shoes after coming to our game. There is no question that this cause is important and that participating is not difficult."

"We are very excited that Coach Giannini has chosen to be a part of the Barefoot Coaching Movement again this season and leave his shoes behind for a game," said Samaritan's Feet Founder, Manny Ohonme. "By doing this, Coach Giannini is making a statement to help provide a voice for the 300 million children world-wide who wake up each morning without a pair of shoes to put on their feet. Coach Giannini's involvement along with coaches around the country who have joined in the Barefoot Coaching Movement brings a new level of awareness to our ongoing mission to reach the world's most impoverished children with the gift of shoes along with the gift of hope. We are truly blessed to have Coach Giannini involved in the Barefoot Coaching Movement."

History

In November of 2007, Samaritan's Feet asked IUPUI Head Basketball Coach Ron Hunter to take off his shoes and socks to raise 40,000 pairs of shoes to bring awareness to the world-wide issue of 300 million children who do not have proper shoes.

Coach Hunter said yes and embraced the goal of raising 40,000 pairs of shoes and by game time on January 24th Coach Hunter had raised more than 140,000 pairs of shoes and $30,000. More than 439 media outlets covered the story before and after he coached the game. Coach Hunter along with his team personally delivered some of those shoes to children in Lima, Peru.

Coach (name of coach) and thousands of other coaches around the world are joining Coach Hunter by going barefoot during a game this season. By doing this they use their platform as a coach to help Samaritan's Feet get that much closer to the goal of distributing 10 million pairs of shoes to 10 million people in 10 years.

Confirmed Coaches

More than 1000 coaches at every level of play are planning or have already participated in the Barefoot Coaching Movement during the 2010-2011 season. In 2009, the NCAA and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) partnered with Samaritan's Feet and its quest to get every basketball coach in America to coach a game in their bare feet.

Just a few of the college coaches are participating this season include: IUPUI Coach, Ron Hunter; South Dakota, State Coach Scott Nagy; Butler Coach, Brad Steves; Kentucy Coach, John Calipari; Tulane Coach, Rick Jones; American University, Coach Jeff Jones; Florida State Coaches, Sue Semrau and Lenord Hamilton; North Carolina-Charlotte Coaches, Alan Major and Karen Aston; La Salle Coach Dr. John Giannini; and many, many more.

About Samaritan's Feet
There are more than 300 million children who go without proper shoes every day. Most times their feet are their only mode of transportation. Samaritan's Feet was started to lessen the number of children who go through lives without their shoes.

Samaritan's Feet is a humanitarian relief organization that puts shoes on the feet of children all around the world and within the United States. The goal is to provide 10 million pairs of shoes for 10 million impoverished people in 10 years. To date nearly 3 million pairs of shoes have been distributed around the world.

Samaritan's Feet was started from the heart of President and Founder Manny Ohonme and his wife Tracie in 2003. Manny, a native of Nigeria, received his first pair of shoes at the age of nine from a missionary. This led to him playing basketball. From there he earned a spot on a traveling team and then on to his high school team. Eventually those shoes and the message of hope they gave him led Manny to the United States where he played basketball on a scholarship from the University of North Dakota (Lake Region). He received both his Bachelor's and Master Degrees from UND-Lake Region.

Manny spent 10 years in the marketing and logistics business before he started Samaritan's Feet to help children around the world pay it forward to others that are in the same situation he was once in.

Samaritan's Feet, based in Charlotte, NC is a humanitarian non-profit relief organization dedicated to taking a life-changing message of hope and equipping the feet of impoverished children in the US and around the world with shoes. Thousands of children die each year from foot-borne diseases and infections. These are easily preventable with a pair of shoes.