March 28, 2024

Collection week for Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gifts

Central Iowa families, churches and groups are not waiting until Thanksgiving Day to express gratitude. Instead, this week they are giving back by lovingly packing gifts of joy for children around the world living in extreme poverty or affected by war, disease, and natural disaster. For many of these children, it will be the first gift they have ever received.

Thousands of Central Iowa residents will pack shoebox gifts filled with a “Wow” item — like a doll or soccer ball — and other fun toys, school supplies, hygiene items and notes of encouragement Nov. 13-20. Operation Christmas Child, a project of the international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse, will deliver the gifts to children in need overseas. In the Central Iowa area, 20 sites will serve as dropoff locations for shoebox gifts to be dropped off by local residents.

After being dropped off at Central Iowa collection sites, these boxes will make the long journey overseas, traveling by any means necessary — boat, plane, train and even elephant — until they reach the hands of children in need. In 2017, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach more than 12 million children, with over 32,000 coming from the Central Iowa area. Since 1993, the project has delivered shoebox gifts to more than 146 million children in over 160 countries and territories.

It’s not too late to get involved, and anyone can participate in this life-changing project for children around the world. Although Nov. 13-20 is National Collection Week, shoebox gifts are collected year-round at the Samaritan’s Purse headquarters in Boone, N.C.

Anyone can conveniently pack a personalized Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift on the Samaritan’s Purse website. These gifts of hope will go to children in some of the hardest-to-reach countries. Go to samaritanspurse.org/occ to find the nearest drop off site and to select toys and gift items, write a note of encouragement, and “pack” them in a shoebox.

Participants can follow their box online to discover where in the world their gift is delivered by using the donation form found at samaritanspurse.org/occ.

For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, call 515-250-2079 or visit samaritanspurse.org/occ.