Operation Christmas Child is underway across the nation. The project is put on by Samaritan’s Purse, known as a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to hurting people around the world. Operation Christmas Child’s National Collection Week is Nov. 17 to 24.
Operation Christmas Child accepts donations of gift-filled shoe boxes to deliver to the less-fortunate children around the world and help spread the Gospel in a tangible way. According to the Samaritan’s Purse website, “Since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has collected and delivered more than 113 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in over 150 countries through Operation Christmas Child.”
“Anyone can participate,” Dexter volunteer, Sherri Hancock said. “Whether you are young or old, Operation Christmas Child is a fun project that makes a tangible difference in the life of a child facing difficult circumstances.”
Churches, warehouses, businesses and homes in Southeast Missouri are being transformed into collection sites for Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. This month, eight locations in the Southeast region will be serving as collection sites. These local drop-off locations are hoping to collect over 24,000 shoe boxes with an ultimate goal of reaching 10 million children living in poverty, disease, and war.
Shoe boxes can contain anything from toys, school supplies, hygiene items and notes of encouragement. Using special tracking technology, participants can register their shoe boxes with a small donation and follow them online to discover which country their gifts will be delivered to.
Gene Wilfong is an area coordinator for the Southeast region. He traveled to Uganda to distribute shoe boxes last year.
“We have actually observed the joy of the children and the appreciation of the pastors and parents, and it’s just something you never forget when you see a child open a gift that has never gotten a gift before in their life,” Wilfong said.
Samaritans Purse has a Christmas Catalog where individuals or groups and organizations can donate a dollar amount to go toward clean water, emergency relief supplies, teaching a child to read and write, building churches and schools, vehicles and bikes for missions and much more.
“I think that together we can do a lot more rather than just individually,” Wilfong said. “Although there is a great deal of good that is done to the countries that receive the shoe boxes, the people themselves get the satisfaction and blessing of knowing they made a difference in a child’s life.