CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – Wyatt Johnson Subaru hosted a shoe and sock giveaway on Friday in partnership with the Salvation Army. The event provided 204 pairs of children’s shoes, along with two pairs of socks for each child, to families in need.

The giveaway is part of Subaru’s Love Promise initiative, which focuses on helping communities. “It is one of the pillars of Subaru Love. It’s where we give back to the community,” Sonja Harrell, executive assistant and Subaru Love Promise coordinator explained. “With it being winter, a lot of families may not have the resources to get shoes or coats, items to keep them warm. So it’s very important to us that we are somewhere they can come for help.”

Wyatt Johnson Subaru General Manager Lindsay Perales said, “We partner each year with Salvation Army, and next year we’ll be giving out jackets.”

Local businesses also joined in to help out. “I was looking for local businesses that wanted to partner with us to try and give a little more, other than shoes and socks, so the kids would have something fun to get when they came,” said Harrell. “The Dugout Clarksville put together bags with candy and bracelets, and Dach of Sweet provided homemade cookies. It was awesome of them to donate their time and resources for free.”

Nina Martin, owner of the Dugout Clarksville said she loves helping out and when she heard Operation Warm was having this event, she jumped in to put together goody bags to help give the children something a little extra outside of the shoes.

Harrell explained the impact of the event. “A lady came up to me and just thanked me relentlessly and told me how much this meant to her,” she said. “It made me really emotional.”

In its 25 years, Operation Warm has supported over 6 million children in more than 4,000 communities. Subaru has helped deliver coats, shoes, and socks to over 290,000 children.