Operation Christmas Child, a charitable effort by international Christian relief organization Samaritan’s Purse, is coming to Moose Jaw Alliance Church from Nov. 18 to 24, giving residents the chance to help children in countries around the world.
“Every year, thousands and thousands of Canadians from coast-to-coast pack shoeboxes, either their own shoeboxes or boxes they get from us or boxes they buy from a dollar store. And they fill those shoeboxes with school supplies, hygiene items, and toys,” explained Frank King, news media relations manager with Samaritan’s Purse Canada.
“Then, they drop them off at one of hundreds of drop-off locations. All that drop-off happens during national collection week, which is November 18 to 24, and after the 24th, all those boxes are shipped to our Calgary warehouse, where thousands of volunteers inspect every shoebox to make sure there’s nothing inside that would scare or harm a child or stop the boxes from getting through customs.”
The shoeboxes are then shipped to countries in need, including Ukraine, Costa Rica, Senegal, El Salvador, and the Philippines.
“Our partners in those countries get them through customs and get them into the hands of children who in many cases have never received a gift before in their lives,” King said.
More information is available at SamaritansPurse.ca. While the organization is explicitly Christian and evangelical, children do not need to qualify for their gifts, and donations are accepted from people of any background.
The Moose Jaw drop-off point during Operation Christmas Child is Moose Jaw Alliance Church at 14 Neslia Place from November 18 to 24 at the following times:
- Mon. 9:00am - 4:00pm
- Tues. 9:00am - 4:00pm
- Wed. 9:00am - 8:00pm
- Thurs. 9:00am - 4:00pm
- Fri. CLOSED
- Sat. 9:30am - 12:00pm
- Sun. CLOSED
Canadians can also pack boxes online at any point throughout the year at PackABox.ca.
Samaritan’s Purse in more than 100 countries. Last year, more than 425,000 shoeboxes were filled by Canadians. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and distributed more than 220 million shoebox gifts in more than 130 countries.
“The three things we look for are school supplies, hygiene items, and toys,” King added. “And the big reason we look for school supplies, for example, is because even in countries where the education system is free, the children often have to bring their own pencils and papers and erasers and pens and that sort of thing.
“Well, that alone means some families will not be able to send their kids to school. They will not be able to get educated and they will not have a chance to break out of a cycle of poverty. So that's why when my wife and I pack our shoe boxes, we always make sure to put lots of school supplies in there.”
