BATON ROUGE – LSU men’s basketball Coach Trent Johnson is joining the growing number of coaches participating in the Samaritan’s Feet program and will coach the annual Sixth Man Club practice/scrimmage on Oct. 25 barefoot.
The Samaritan’s Feet program, supported by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the NCAA and others, attempts to raise awareness of the vast number of children around the world who are forced to go barefoot because they don’t own a pair of shoes.
In 2007, then IUPUI Coach Ron Hunter was asked by Samaritan’s Feet to take off his shoes and socks to help raise 40,000 pairs of shoes. In less than six weeks, Samaritan’s Feet had raised over 140,000 pairs of shoes and over $30,000. Today, Samaritan’s Feet has served 62 countries around the world and has placed new shoes on the feet of more than two million children.
“Leaving my shoes behind for a practice is only a small part of the type of impact we can make towards Samaritan’s Feet,” said Coach Johnson. “We are excited to become a part of the barefoot movement and help bring awareness to this cause. It is important to all of us to be able to help provide shoes and hope for children in need.
“Our goal at LSU is to raise $5,000, which will distribute 500 pairs of shoes to impoverished children in Louisiana and around the world,” said LSU’s fourth-year coach. “I am hoping that this example will lead our players to live a life of service. It’s important that they embrace character, commitment and class and live that out while they are at LSU and once they leave.”
The annual practice/scrimmage that Coach Johnson will coach barefoot is open to members of the LSU men’s booster “Sixth Man Club” and will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 25 on the main floor of the Pete Maravich Assembly Center with the dinner and group meeting to follow at approximately 7 p.m. in the Legends Club of the LSU practice facility. For information on Sixth Man members attending the event contact the LSU basketball office 225-578-8217.
For information on joining the Sixth Man club, check out the club link on the LSU men’s basketball page at LSUsports.net or the Sixth Man club web site http://6thman.tigerboosterclubs.org.
For more information on Samaritan’s Feet and to donate to Coach Johnson’s effort go to www.firstgiving.com/fundraiser/Coachjohnson/barefootforbarefeet.
LSU Basketball is on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/LSUBasketball and follow the program on Twitter @LSUBasketball and @LSUCoachJohnson.