As the summer season comes to an end, local families are preparing for the school year with back-to-school sales, but many families are not just shopping for their own children.
Families are collecting school supplies, along with personal care items and fun toys, for children in need around the world. These items will fill Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts, which will be sent to children in over 100 countries.
For many children around the world, school supplies like coloring pencils and markers are a luxury many cannot access.
For Dioany Yosuino, a shoebox recipient from Venezuela, colorful markers were something she longed to have as she attended school, but her family could not afford them.
When Yosuino received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox, she remembers all the vibrant colors and the brand-new toys.
“To my surprise, I also received really good, quality markers,” said Yosuino. “From that moment and through the shoebox gift, I understood what the Bible says is true. Whenever we trust in God, He promises to give us the desires of our heart,” said Yosuino.
For more information, visit samaritanspurse.org/occ.
National Collection Week is Nov. 17 – 24. Participants can donate $10 per shoebox gift online through “Follow Your Box” and receive a tracking label to discover its destination.
Those who prefer the convenience of online shopping can browse samaritanspurse.org/buildonline to select gifts matched to a child’s specific age and gender, then finish packing the virtual shoebox by adding a photo and personal note of encouragement.
Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse, seeks to demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world and, together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 232 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories.