Shoe, backpack giveaway draws hundreds to Bardstown Road boutique

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The crowd was flowing into the street at Bardstown Road Tuesday while parents and students waited in line for a chance to get a free pair of shoes and a backpack.

The event, organized by Louisville native rapper EST Gee and several other organizations, aimed to provide students with free shoes and school supplies before many districts begin class Wednesday. Oneness Boutique on Bardstown Road partnered with the organizations and the rapper to host the event and help purchase the shoes to be given away.

Those waiting in line to get the shoes and supplies said there was a crowd of people at Oneness by 10 a.m.

"We've been out here since 10 o'clock waiting," said Josiah Howell, who starts high school Wednesday. "I thought I wasn't going to get none, but I got something and I'm grateful for that."

As the crowd grew in the afternoon, many who were waiting spilled out into the street.

Those in attendance told WDRB there were a few fights, and at least one person who passed out due to the heat.

Officers with the Louisville Metro Police Department arrived on Bardstown Road and assisted in getting pedestrians on the sidewalk.

"EMS & LFD were requested for heat-related issues however all assistance was cancelled as the event concluded and attendees began to leave. Throughout the event, the business was extremely cooperative in promoting the safety of everyone at the giveaway," an LMPD spokesperson said in a statement.

Despite the chaos, those who received free supplies and shoes before the start of the new school year were thrilled.

"It was a great help being able to get my oldest a pair of shoes," said Shanell Rodgers, a mother of five. "It was a lot of commotion, but like I said, no guns or anything like that. It was your common pushing and pulling that you're going to see anytime something is free."