The Skechers Foundation presented checks to multiple organizations benefiting special-needs children and educational organizations at a celebration event on Thursday in Manhattan Beach, Calif., with celebrity attendees, including boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard and fitness enthusiast Denise Austin.
The checks presented were raised from footwear company’s 2017 Pier to Pier Friendship walk, which garnered more than $1.85 million for charity.
The Skechers Foundation gave $510,667 to the Friendship Foundation, a non-profit organization that assists children with special needs and their families.
Additional checks — valued between $105,000 and $240,000 — were presented to the El Segundo Ed Foundation, Hermosa Beach Ed Foundation, Manhattan Beach Ed Foundation, Peninsula Ed Foundation, Redondo Beach Ed Foundation and Torrance Ed Foundation.
The Pier to Pier Friendship walk was the ninth Skechers held, and since its founding, the walk has raised increasing amounts — and expanded upon participation — each year. In 2009, the walk drew 1,712 participants and raised $220,000. This year’s walk led to the highest earnings yet, with $1.85 million raised, and drew the most participants, with 14,000 walking.
