Shoeboxes to be filled by Nov. 18

Congregations at Matthews Memorial Presbyterian, First Baptist Church, and First Christian Church are collecting shoe box gifts for the Samaritan’s Purse annual Operation Christmas Child, and will gladly accept donations for the program from now until Sunday, Nov. 18.

Abilene is the nearest drop-off location, and First Christian pastor Brad McBee will deliver locally collected shoeboxes to First Baptist Church in Abilene on Nov. 19.

“We still have boxes available,” said McBee earlier this week. “It’s a great program. We delivered over 100 boxes last year.”

The shoebox gifts are filled with fun toys, school supplies and hygiene items to share God’s love with millions of boys and girls around the world through the Samaritan’s Purse project. Donors are also asked to contribute $9 per box to cover the costs of shipping. 

Operation Christmas Child hopes to distribute the shoebox gifts to 11 million children in need this year.

Because the boxes are distributed around the world, participants should read the list of items that should not be included, and avoid packing things that are not allowed through customs and/or may not be appropriate for some children.

For information on packing a shoebox, go to samaritanspurse.org.

Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse, an international Christian relief and evangelism organization headed by Franklin Graham. 

The mission of Operation Christmas Child is 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 157 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 160 countries and territories. For many of these children, the gift-filled shoebox is the first gift they have ever received.

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