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Donations Help America's Tallest Man Get New Shoes

ROCHESTER, Minn. (WCCO) -- Just days after WCCO aired a story about the predicament America's tallest man faces, the Rochester, Minn. resident has seen an outpouring of generosity.

Igor Vovkivinskiy is 7 feet, 8 inches tall, and has had 15 foot surgeries in the last three years. The residual pain from those surgeries makes it difficult for him to stay on his feet at times, so he moves around the house in a motorized wheelchair.

Vovkivinskiy told WCCO's Holly Wagner a pair of shoes with proper support would change his life, would help him lose weight he gained during bed rest and gain back the muscle he lost.

Vovkivinskiy, who came to the U.S. from the Ukraine when he was a child, needs size 26 shoes. When he contacted Reebok, they told him it would cost $15,000 to have shoes specially made for him, money not in the budget for this college student.

With the encouragement of his friends, he started a web page and started collecting donations. Since WCCO's story aired on Monday, he now has over $25,000 in donations and counting.

Igor posted this message: "Thank you so much kind people of Minnesota! Thank you people for your kindness, generosity, outpouring of support."

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