The Non-Profit, Students Run Philly Style Developed Their Own Sneaker and are Selling it to Raise Money

The Non-Profit, Students Run Philly Style Developed Their Own Sneaker and are Selling it to Raise Money

Sneakerhead or not, everyone eventually is in the market for a good reliable and in many cases fashionable pair of kicks.  Now a local non-profit is looking to put their own sneaker on the market to help raise some funds. Students Run Philly Style (SRPS), a youth mentorship non-profit serving 1,000 students in every zip code of Philadelphia, will be releasing its own sneaker. 100% of sneaker sales benefit its youth running program and only 200 pairs will be available. The Water Stop sneaker is available to pre-order here.

The Water Stop sneaker pays homage to the centrality of wooder in Philly, while celebrating the power of youth mentorship. On the heel is the iconic water ice cup, a nod to the city’s favorite treat and the youth program’s Scoop ‘N Loop race that includes both running and eating water ice. The insoles are an original watercolor map of the Schuylkill River Trail designed by SRPS youth artist Celeste Ortiz-Lugo. Students and mentors spend countless hours on the Schuylkill River Trail, training to complete milestone races like Broad Street and the Philadelphia Marathon while building resiliency and goal setting behaviors that will take them far beyond the finish line. Custom touches on the shoe also include a woven SRPS tongue tag with 2004, the year the non-profit was founded.

SRPS is proud to work with Iye Yin Dae, a self-taught multi-disciplinary artist born and raised in Philadelphia, as lead artist on the Water Stop sneaker. His most recent work includes a collaboration with Urban Outfitters. The sneaker is a Diadora Game High Top, selected because Diadora is the official running shoe sponsor of Students Run Philly Style and their North American HQ is in South Philly.  Water Stop is uniquely Philly, through and through.