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A longtime Dallas police officer has a side passion-project that came to him through his police work.

“We would start doing some of these crime watch meetings and we’d come into the summer months and see some of the kids come and you’d see that their shoes were just worn out,” Officer Brian Nolff said.

So, he started collecting new shoes.

“I remember when I was younger and you got a new pair of shoes you just felt better, you had more confidence and it was a good thing,” Nolff recalled.

says this year he collected 650 pairs of shoes and started touring around town, bringing them to places like the Dallas Parks and Recreation Summer programs, where Diane Ware says she had plenty of feet for them to fit.

“It’s an excellent, positive thing for them to see them. Especially the men – our boys need to see more men,” Ware said.

This visit isn’t just about shoes — Officer Nolff wants these young men and women to know that their neighborhood cops care about them.