May 18, 2026
Faith in action: ‘Your Soles — Their Souls’ shoe drive collects over 7,057 pairs
Annual collection helps The Tide further adult literacy programs in India
CHAMBERSBURG, Pa. — Each year, The Tide® (www.thetide.org) ministry’s “Your Soles — Their Souls” shoe drive takes the common phrase “Walk a mile in their shoes” and puts it into action. As a global Gospel broadcast ministry located on three continents, The Tide has seen firsthand the life-changing impact that a single pair of shoes can bring, making each year’s shoe drive more impactful than the last.
The Tide is thrilled to announce that through their fifth annual “Your Soles, Their Souls” shoe drive, 7,057 pairs of shoes were gathered. The shoes collected will benefit micro-businesses in developing countries around the world, and the funds raised from this campaign will help finance The Tide’s Gospel outreach through literacy classes in India.
“For the fifth year in a row, The Tide has collected our supporters’ shoes and used them to further the Great Commission,” shared Executive Director Don Shenk. “Each year, we have seen God work through the shoe drive and help our brothers and sisters across continents who have yet to hear the Good News and learn about Christ’s community of believers.”
Through a community effort, the shoes collected and donated to The Tide were picked up at the end of the drive and paid for by their partnering organization. The Tide will use the funds collected to finance Gospel Outreach Literacy Classes in India. The “boots on the ground” team in India then uses biblically based material in the classes, exposing the students to the Gospel as they learn. Along with supporting The Tide’s ministry in India, their partnering organization sends the shoes to over 20 developing countries.
“After almost 80 years of ministry through media broadcasts, we are always looking for ways to keep spreading the Gospel for the next 80 years to come,” says Don Shenk, The Tide ministry director. “The annual ‘Your Soles, Their Souls’ outreach is a great way to bring awareness to what we have been doing around the world, as well as provide funding for additional literacy classes in India.”
From its humble origins in 1946 as a local Gospel radio broadcast in Chambersburg, PA, The Tide® ministry has grown into a global network of Christian media broadcasting partnerships committed to worldwide evangelism and discipleship. In 2008, The Tide® ministry ended all English-language programming in order to focus on developing and distributing indigenous heart-language content in areas around the world that are less touched by the Gospel. Today, The Tide® ministry works with partners in multiple countries across three continents to broadcast Gospel-centered messages via radio, satellite TV and other media. In order to make disciples and plant churches, The Tide® ministry also provides resources for literature distribution, correspondence courses, discipleship and leadership training activities, and the distribution of radios and media players.
For more information about The Tide® ministry broadcast projects, history, radio programs around the world, special year-long campaigns, the weekly Global Update radio features or other news, visit its website at www.thetide.org or its Facebook page.
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To schedule interviews with Don Shenk, director of The Tide® global radio ministry, contact Hamilton Strategies, Media@HamiltonStrategies.com, Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.
To inquire about airing any of The Tide® ministry radio broadcasts, contact Michael Hamilton, 610.584.1096, ext. 101.
