By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
It's not quite Mayberry. But the open red door, an apron full of tools, and cups of coffee and friendly waves from a wooden bench outside the shop bring back memories of yesteryear in downtown Great Bend. Matt Felke, also known as the Boot Doctor at 1306 Kansas Ave., purchased the shop from Jerry Becker in 2008.
"I earned my living on horseback for 30-plus years," Felke said. "I was getting so beat up I could hardly get on and off a horse anymore. I brought some boots in here to Mr. Becker to get them fixed and made the smart remark of what am I going to do if you ever retire? You're going to have to teach me so I can do it from home."
Felke grew up in Great Bend, then spent time cowboying in Colorado, riding a ranch southeast of Great Bend, and he spent 14 years in the pens at Great Bend Feeders. But he eventually learn the repair craft. Becker owned Becker Shoe Repair at the location for approximately 24 years before Felke moved in. The sign says Boot Doctor, but Felke and his part-time staff of Fred Gullett and Donna Selle can repair just about anything.
"If I can get it in the machine, I'll stitch it," Felke said. "That machine over there will stitch up to an inch thick so there are very few things I can't stitch."
The shop includes leather conditioners and rare shoe polish colors that are otherwise impossible to find locally. Felke repairs all types of leather goods, including saddles, and he's made everything from cell phone cases, knife sheaths, and custom chaps. Non-leather work includes zipper repair, lawnmower bags, purses, and once the padding used by a Kansas City-area officer that trains police dogs. He's also done work for the Fort Larned Historical Museum.
"In the old Westerns, when you see the stagecoach and they put the luggage on the back, there's a canvas or leather deal that comes down and covers it. That's called the mudflap on a stagecoach. They had one over at Larned made out of vinyl and it disintegrated in one summer. They brought it over here and we duplicated it with real leather like it would have been in the 1800s."
The shop does sell new boots, though stock has been limited since the COVID-19 pandemic. While most shoes can be fixed, Felke prefers shoes made in the United States.
"I promote and I endorse American-made," he said. "A lot of stuff is made overseas. Most of that stuff is not intended to repair. You pay a little more for American-made but I can rebuild it. Usually, the foreign stuff is made to throw away."
The Boot Doctor is open Tuesday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and on Saturday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.