St. Brendan High runner runs shoe donation project

By Emily Chaffins -

MIAMI | For 11th-grader Camila Bisio, the concept of giving thanks doesn’t just bring up the image of a Thanksgiving meal – it brings to mind a pair of running shoes. 

From elementary school at St. Theresa Catholic School in Coral Gables, Camila has been following in her mom’s footsteps, running together. Beginning in fourth grade, she participated in as many as four 5K runs per year.

Now a student at St. Brendan High School in Miami and racing for the school team, Camila recognizes that access to good-quality shoes allows her to pursue her passion. She founded the Step Forward Foundation to ensure others have everyday footwear. The foundation’s motto is, “Helping others step forward one shoe at a time.”

For Camila, “it’s good to have track and field and cross country as an outlet for stress at school,” she said in an interview with the Florida Catholic. This has made her especially compassionate toward people who lack proper footwear. She began her shoe donation drive in spring 2025, for which she earned the national AP with WE Service Recognition, an award given to students who do service projects in Advanced Placement classes.

Camila is the first St. Brendan High student to earn the award as of this August. The AP with WE Service Recognition is sponsored by the College Board, a nonprofit organization that aims to connect students to college success and opportunity, and the WE Charity, an international organization that engages youth in community service.

“Her project not only addressed a tangible need in the community but also exemplified the values of empathy, leadership and civic engagement that St. Brendan High School strives to instill in its students,” said St. Brendan High’s Oct. 8 press release.

In fall 2024 AP Capstone Seminar, taught by Stephanie Kelly-Esquivel, Camila brainstormed the Step Forward Foundation.

“With running, especially with practicing multiple times a week, your shoes usually get worn out, and you need a new pair once a year, or once every few months,” Camila explained. “If we didn’t have the means to get new shoes every season, I don’t think I would’ve been able to keep running, not only because I wouldn’t have the resources, but also it could be harmful to your feet.”

She strove to provide footwear for men, women and children through donation drives.

“She organized the drive, where to donate, where to collect the shoes,” said Kelly-Esquivel. “I mainly helped her with the end-of-the-year project, the reflection and putting it together to submit to the College Board.”

Camila’s initial donors were family and friends. Building off her first harvest of approximately 40 pairs of shoes by the close of the spring 2025 semester, she “slowly began to do bigger and bigger things,” as she put it.

During May and June, Camila collaborated with her alma mater, St. Theresa School, which has spearheaded successful food, clothing and baby-supply drives. Their combined efforts yielded about 150 pairs of shoes.

St. Brendan High students and families have given dozens of pairs of shoes toward Camila’s endeavor.

Camila has a multi-step method for distributing the donations. First, she transports the shoes to her garage. Her mother assisting, Camila organizes the items in plastic bags, marking down the shoe sizes. Camila inspects the shoes to verify that they are in good condition.

Then she hands the shoes over to Lotus House, Camillus House and St. John Bosco Parish, all in Miami, for distribution.

“In taking these shoes to shelters, I saw how grateful many women were to receive shoes for themselves and their children, regardless of whether they were new or gently used,” she said in the press release.

With this project, she stood out from a national pool of applicants for the AP with WE Service Recognition.

“I’m just very impressed with how easily she developed the project, how she’s continuing to do it even after the (AP) service project ended,” Kelly-Esquivel said.

“We are incredibly proud of Camila’s achievement,” said Ivette Alvarez, St. Brendan High principal, according to the school press release. “Her dedication to service and her ability to connect academic learning with real-world impact reflect the heart of Catholic education. Camila’s work is an inspiration to our entire school community.”

Aspiring to practice family law, Camila also has big plans for the Step Forward Foundation. She plans to collaborate with more schools on donation drives. In the near future, she would even like to transport shoes to Argentina, where her family is originally from.

“Having a Catholic education has shaped me as a person because it’s not like you’re only focused on your academics or sports,” she said. “Because everything is rooted in Christ, He has a role in everything you do. When you take a test, He’s with you. When you run a race, He’s with you. When you’re with a friend, you see Him through them.”

Through Camila’s eyes, donating a comfortable pair of shoes is another way to enable others to stand on their own two feet through Christ.

LEARN MORE 
Learn more about the Step Forward Foundation’s work on Instagram @step_forwardfoundation.