Baltimore is a sneaker city, and that matters for its STEM pipeline

If you, like The Be. Org, have been in Baltimore for a decade or more, nostalgic and catchy commercials like this one for a now-defunct, Baltimore-based shoe store ought to jog a memory or two. Although that commercial was specific to one shoe store, it speaks volumes about the significance sneakers hold in the local community. This importance is something founders like Tonee Lawson have recognized, as evidenced in her nonprofit The Be. Org’s fifth annual Sneaker Ball fundraising gala on April 6.