Like Water For Shoes: Sandal Company Helps The Poor In Guatemala
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The huaraches, or sandals, Francesca Kennedy sells are inspired by her Guatemalan heritage and the indigenous inventors of the iconic sandals.
With the shoe company, which has been touted by celebrities including Gwyneth Paltrow, the Pennsylvania native is hoping to change the lives of the Guatemalans who live near and depend on a polluted late.
Francesca Kennedy (right) started <i>iX Style </i>with her brother, John (left), a teacher in Philadelphia.
“I saw kids collecting the water from the lake, and it looked and smelled like sewage. The contamination was obvious. I wanted to do something, but it had to be beyond simply starting charity to raise money,” Francesca Kennedy told <i>Fox News Latino</i>.
Kennedy said many people are jaded by charities, so she wanted to do something different. One day a few years ago, she said, she picked up a few pairs of huaraches for friends and the idea hit her. “Why not create the most comfortable huaraches in super-fun colors, and maybe some the money from the sales could help with the water situation in the town,” she said.