Operation Christmas Child participants can build a virtual shoebox online by selecting gifts for a child’s age and gender, then adding a photo and personal note of encouragement. Visit samaritanspurse.org/buildonline for more information.
MOUNTAIN GROVE, Mo. — As families prepare for the upcoming school year, Cassie Todd is encouraging area residents to consider purchasing extra school supplies for children in need around the world.
Todd is collecting notebooks, pencils, markers and other school supplies, along with personal care items and small toys, for Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts. The boxes will be distributed to children in more than 100 countries.
For many children, basic school supplies are difficult to obtain and may be considered a luxury.
“I love working with my family to help other families,” Todd said. “We love to carefully pick out items that we think the children will light up about.”
Todd, a Mountain Grove volunteer, has participated in the project for nine years.
“For some of these children, this will be the only gift they ever receive,” she said. “It is so much fun to imagine the delight they will exude as they open the box we so carefully put together as a family.”
National Collection Week will be held Nov. 16 through Nov. 23. Participants may donate $10 per shoebox online through the “Follow Your Box” program and receive a tracking label showing where their gift is delivered.
Those who prefer to participate online may visit samaritanspurse.org/buildonline to select items for a child based on age and gender. Participants may also include a photograph and personal note of encouragement with the virtual shoebox.
Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse that provides gift-filled shoeboxes to children in need while working with churches around the world. Since 1993, the organization has collected and delivered more than 244 million shoebox gifts to children in more than 175 countries and territories.
For more information, call 816-622-8316 or visit samaritanspurse.org/occ.
