One-of-a-kind gold Nike Air Jordans donated to homeless shelter reach huge price at auction
A pair of rare Nike sneakers donated to an Oregon homeless shelter in Portland sold for nearly $51,000 at auction on Monday
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Watching a countdown of the auction's final minutes on Monday, Erin Holcomb couldn't believe it: the sale price kept jumping for the rare, gold Nike Air Jordan 3s that were anonymously dropped in the donation chute of the Oregon shelter where she works in Portland.
“In the last five minutes it went up and up, and every time we saw that number increase, there were tears and people clapping,” Holcomb, director of staff ministries at the Portland Rescue Mission.
The sneakers, custom pairs that had been made for filmmaker Spike Lee, ultimately sold for $50,800 — more than double the high end of the predicted sale price. All proceeds will benefit the Portland Rescue Mission, which has served people struggling with homelessness, hunger and addiction since 1949.
“We couldn't believe it,” Holcomb said. “The generosity of this moment has been a huge celebration for our whole organization.”
Some two dozen people, mostly staff, gathered Monday morning to watch the auction live on a big screen TV in one of the shelter's conference rooms, Holcomb said.
Among them was James Free, a formerly homeless man who found the shoes while sorting through donations and brought them to the attention of the staff. Free has lived at the mission for the past few months as part of its long-term shelter program, Holcomb said.
“I’m just so happy to be a part of this," Free said in a news release shared by the shelter after the auction closed. "I love this place, and I’m so glad to see this story shared.”
The sneakers were on auction at Sotheby's. They were auctioned along with a replacement box and other Nike merchandise donated by Tinker Hatfield, who custom designed the sneakers for Lee in 2019.
Lee wore his pair to the Academy Awards that year when he accepted an Oscar for his “BlacKkKlansman” screenplay. The donated sneakers weren’t Lee’s personal pair, but were among a few made for him to give out to his inner circle, the Portland Rescue Mission said.
Hatfield visited the shelter and authenticated the shoes. Nike is based in nearby Beaverton, Oregon.
Holcomb said the money from the auction will help fund services at the downtown Portland shelter, which provides food and access to bathrooms and showers, as well as health care, housing and employment resources. It serves some 6,000 people and 300,000 meals every year, Holcomb said.
“That building is open 24/7, 365 days a year,” she said. “It's a really beautiful, helpful gift and it is a piece of a much larger story of generosity in our community.”
The identity of whoever donated the shoes remains a mystery.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.