Every year, Nike and the Oregon Health and Sciences University (OHSU) Doernbecher Children’s Hospital work together to raise funds for the hospital. Since the start of the program back in 2004, the duo have raised over US$31 million, which is a huge milestone that helps the hospital tend to its patients.

A big part of the collaboration comes from the Nike Doernbecher Freestyle Program. Every year, a select amount of OHSU Doernbecher young patients are given the opportunity to work with Nike Employee Design volunteers to design unique products, which are then auctioned off and donated to benefit the hospital.

This year, six talented young designers worked to create a lineup of six silhouettes. The designs in this year’s collections include an Air Foamposite One by Coley Miller, an Air Max 90 by Emerson Harrell, a Zoom Vomero 5 by Jaren Heacock, an Air Huarache by Dario Villaseñor Valdivia, an Air Presto by Kylee Young and an Air Jordan 1 Low by Riddhi Mahajan.

A set of apparel designed by the inspiring young creators will also be released with the sneakers, each designed and coordinated to each designer’s sneaker impression.

Air Foamposite One by Coley Miller

To kick things off, 11-year-old Coley Miller’s Air Foamposite One is a beautiful homage to both her favorite sport, basketball, as well as her Klamath Tribe heritage. The night-sky graphics that run throughout the upper of the shoe is inspired by the youth’s stargazing memories with her mother, who donated a kidney to Coley. The phrase “ho mas gi” beneath the translucent outsole translates to “Just Do It” in Coley’s Klamath language.

Nike Air Max 90 by Emerson Herell

For 15-year-old Emerson Herell, his dream of becoming an investor largely encompasses the design behind his Air Max 90. Being a sneaker collector himself (who has over 10 pairs), it’s no surprise that he chose the Air Max 90 to work on. The toe box of the Air Max 90 imitates the texture of the dollar bill, while the insole features his initials as well as coordinates of his hometown. The phrase “BEAR DOWN” is also embedded into the midsole of the silhouette, a shout-out to Herell’s favorite team: the Arizona Wildcats.

Nike Zoom Vomero 5 by Jaren Heacock

Presenting a Zoom Vomero 5, a hoodie and a backpack, 10 year-old Jaren Heacock largely honors his Chinese heritage by using dragon-inspired design cues throughout his creations. Being a big fan of video games as well, the tongue tab features both the Chinese character for dragon as well as a block version of his likeness. His favorite athletes are his brothers and sisters, which are represented in his shoe’s design.

Nike Air Huarache by Dario Villaseñor Valdivia

13-year-old Dario Villaseñor Valdivia embodies all of his interests and hobbies into the Air Huarache. Presented in a bright orange makeup, motifs of an orange, one of Dario’s favorite things, take on the tongue as well as the entire silhouette. He aspires to be an animator someday, and has already started creating stick animation on his YouTube channel. These are represented with button logos on the heel clip, as well as the characters on the toe box. On the outsole, “siempre fuerte” is written along both shoes, showing his determination to “remain strong” through his battle with Myelomonocytic Leukemia.

Nike Air Presto by Kylee Young

12-year-old Kylee Young brings an overload of cuteness with her Air Presto. Diagnosed with an E. coli infection when she was just 2 which left her wheelchair-bound and unable to speak, Kylee never stopped sharing her love for the world and spreading joy allover. That can be seen with her Air Presto design, with cheerful springtime motifs peppered all over the toe box. As you can already tell, pink is her favorite color, which sees it being used throughout the upper of the shoe. Her nickname “cookies” is displayed in blue on the heel, a reference to her awesome ability to sell cookies for her troop.

Air Jordan 1 Low by Riddhi Mahajan

Last but certainly not the least, 15-year-old Riddhi Mahajan’s take on the Air Jordan 1 Low recreates her radiating positivity wherever she goes. Despite living with cystic fibrosis, Riddhi has never stopped doing what she loves, playing the sports she loves and boasting a high GPA as well as a black belt in Tae Kwan Do. “Brand New Day” is inscribed on the toe box, reminding everyone that there’s always something to look forward to. The tongue tab and laces represent a sunrise, while “radiate positivity” also appears on the insole.

Take a look at the entire collection, as well as more detailed imagery of each individual pair via the top slider above.

While the auction is still ongoing, Nike has announced that the entire Doernbecher Freestyle XVIII collection will be available on Nike SNKRS and at select retailers in the coming months, with a price range of US$100 to US$230. Stay tuned for more updates as we’ll bring you the latest about this collection as soon we can!

In other sneaker-related news, take an early first look at Teyana Taylor x Air Jordan 1 High Zoom CMFT 2 SP “A Rose From Harlem”.

Images courtesy of Nike.