Anonymously donated Spike Lee Air Jordans net $68K for Portland homeless shelter
'There was a lot of yelling, whooping and clapping in those final minutes,' says shelter staff member
A Portland homeless shelter is getting a lot mileage out of a single pair of sneakers.
The bright gold, mint-condition Nike Air Jordan 3 shoes sold at auction Monday for $50,800 US ($68,000 Cdn).
The rare sneakers — custom designed for director Spike Lee and a few of his closest friends ahead of the 2019 Academy Awards — were anonymously donated to the Portland Rescue Mission.
They netted the Oregon organization more than double what Sotheby's auction house had predicted. The bid rose by $28,000 US in the final 10 minutes.
"There was a lot of yelling, whooping and clapping in those final minutes," Erin Holcomb, the mission's director of staff ministry, told CBC in an email after the auction closed. "It was amazing."
An unexpected find
Volunteer James Free found the unexpected treasure while sorting through the mission's donation bin.
The shiny gold sneakers stood out from the usual gently used items tossed down the mission's donation chute, so he set them aside.
Free, who is formerly homeless, said in a press release: "I'm just so happy to be a part of this. I love this place, and I'm so glad to see this story shared."
Holcomb told As It Happens last week that a high-end sneaker shop in Portland offered her $10,000 US on the spot for the shoes, but she decided to hold onto them and "make the best decisions to benefit the rescue mission and the work that we do here."
That decision paid off in spades.
"This incredible gift is such a perfect example of the miracles we see every day," she said Monday in a press release.
"We believe the real treasures here are the people we serve at Portland Rescue Mission, the stories of lives and relationships restored and people getting off the street."
The sneakers were designed by Portland's Tinker Hatfield, a legendary Nike designer, for Lee and a few members of his inner circle in 2019. They were never sold to the public.
Lee famously wore his on stage while receiving the the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for BlacKkKlansman.
It's not clear who donated the men's size 12.5 sneakers to the mission, but Halcomb doesn't believe it was Lee himself. The director has previously said he wears size 9.5.
Whoever it was, she says the gift will go a long way to helping the mission achieve his mission of helping people struggling with homelessness, hunger and addiction
"Just like these sneakers that were rescued from our donation bin, we see lives rescued every day," she said. "These shoes just tell that story so well."
With files from Chloe Shantz-Hilkes
