Little acts, lasting impact: SM Store’s season of caring

In many public schools across the country, the school day begins not with the clatter of chairs or the roll call of names, but with something far more universal: hope. Hope that the day will be kind. Hope that the weather will be steady. Hope that health—and shoes sturdy enough to get through muddy roads—will hold up long enough until the next bell rings.

These past couple of months, while communities were still reeling from typhoons and influenza outbreaks, SM Store quietly packed that hope into 13,500 small blue bags and sent them to classrooms nationwide. These care kits—filled with tissue, paracetamol, alcohol and soap—may seem simple, but in many homes, they are exactly what families struggle to keep in stock during crisis season.

The Shop & Share Carekits program is SM Store’s newest expression of its long-rooted advocacy for Good Health and Well-Being. It was designed not just as a donation drive, but as a reminder that preventive care begins with the basics, and that the basics must be shared generously when neighbors need them most. In true bayanihan fashion, employees and loyal customers helped make the initiative possible, proving once again that compassion multiplies when everyone picks up even a small corner of the load.

But the season of giving didn’t end there.

As October ushered in the birth anniversary of SM founder Henry “Tatang” Sy Sr., SM Store reopened one of its most heartfelt traditions: the annual Shop & Share Shoes program, a tribute to the man whose own humble beginnings taught him that a pair of shoes can shape a child’s journey—literally and figuratively.

This year, 10,000 children from over 70 public schools nationwide laced up brand-new pairs of shoes, each one co-sponsored by an SM Store customer. That’s the magic of Shop & Share: the gift isn’t given by a corporation alone, but by ordinary shoppers who choose to make an extraordinary difference. Every pair tells a story—of a parent who can breathe a little easier, of a child who suddenly has one less burden to carry on the way to school, of dreams that feel just a little more reachable.

Teachers often say that the first thing they notice after shoe distributions is posture. Children walk straighter, lighter, prouder. The path to education may still be long and uneven, but good shoes—and the knowledge that someone thought of them—make the journey a little more forgiving.

Both programs may appear different in form: one tucked into small kits of hygiene essentials, the other wrapped in boxes carrying the promise of comfort and pride. But they are united by the legacy that built SM: that giving should be timely, compassionate, and shared.

Shop & Share continues to thrive not because of scale—though the numbers are impressive—but because of spirit. It proves that kindness is not seasonal, and that the simplest items, when given with intention, become powerful reminders of community.

In every care kit handed out and every pair of shoes tied snugly around a child’s feet, SM Store renews its commitment to be more than a place where people shop. It strives to be a place where people help each other, where small gestures ripple into lasting change.

And in schools across the country, thousands of children now walk a little safer, stand a little taller, and step into their futures with a bit more confidence—one care kit, one pair of shoes, one act of bayanihan at a time.

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Editor's note: BrandedUp is designed to provide you with insightful, inspiring, and educational content created by The Philippine STAR in collaboration with brands like SM Store.