Canadians donated 664,066 shoeboxes packed with toys, hygiene items, and school supplies during the 2013 Operation Christmas Child shoebox campaign that ended recently. That’s an increase of almost 2,000 from the 2012 total.
Thirty-one of these shoeboxes came from Barriere, B.C., during the month of November when ladies from the Bethany Baptist Church, and the community, spent the day filling 29 Samaritan’s Purse Shoe Boxes with school supplies, personal hygiene items, and toys or other small gifts.
Operation Christmas Child staff, volunteers, and partners are now distributing the 2013 shoeboxes in the developing world.
During the next few weeks, children in Haiti, Senegal, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Sierra Leone, Nicaragua, El Salvador, Costa Rica, Uruguay, Paraguay, Guatemala, and Venezuela will be receiving shoeboxes packed by caring Canadians.
“Once again, tens of thousands of Canadians have blessed the lives of children in the developing world by packing shoeboxes for them,” said Randy Crosson, director of Operation Christmas Child Canada, a program of international Christian relief and development organization Samaritan’s Purse Canada.
“Each shoebox is an opportunity to show these children—many of whom have never before received a personal gift—that they are loved by God and by generous Canadians from coast to coast.”
More than 4,000 shoeboxes were packed online, as Canadians took advantage of Operation Christmas Child’s option that enables anyone visiting PackABox.ca to choose shoebox gift items, write a personal note, add a photo, and make a donation.
This online option is available year-round for those who for health reasons, scheduling challenges, or limited access to transportation aren’t able to shop for gifts and pack shoeboxes in the traditional way.
Since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has collected and hand-delivered more than 100 million shoebox gifts to children in over 130 countries hurt by war, poverty, natural disaster, disease, and famine.
Shoe box distributions often open doors for Samaritan’s Purse, in consultation with local community leaders, to identify and meet other needs such as safe water, sustainable food production, and/or vocational training.
Samaritan’s Purse Canada is an international Christian relief and development organization working in about 40 countries to help victims of war, disease, disaster, poverty, famine, and persecution.
The charity’s primary activities include not only Operation Christmas Child, but building and installing life-saving BioSand Water Filters in the developing world.
Go to SamaritansPurse.ca for more information.