Since 1993, more than 100 million boys and girls in over 130 countries have experienced God’s love through the power of simple shoebox gifts from Operation Christmas Child. Samaritan’s Purse works with local churches and ministry partners to deliver the gifts and share the life-changing Good News of Jesus Christ. Vansickle Baptist Church will be collecting the boxes for Samaritan’s Purse through November 16th. Please consider blessing someone this holiday season by giving a shoebox.
What to do
- Find a SHOE BOX – Start with an average-size cardboard or plastic shoebox. If you want to wrap it, cover the box and lid separately. Or, you can just pick a pre-printed box from the church.
- GIRL or BOY? – Determine whether your gift will be for a girl or a boy, and the child’s age range: 2-4 year olds, 5-9 year olds, or 10-14 year olds.
- FILL WITH GIFTS – Select a medium to large “wow” item such as a soccer ball with pump or stuffed animal, then fill with other fun toys, school supplies, and personal care items. Don’t forget to also include a personal note and photo—sometimes these are the child’s favorite things to receive! Gift suggestions can be found here.
- PRAY – Most importantly, pray for the child who will receive your gift. Please also pray for: 1.) their family to also be receptive to the Good News of Jesus Christ; 2.) the pastor of the church who delivers your shoebox gift; and 3.) their community to be transformed by the Gospel.
- FOLLOW YOUR BOX LABELS – Donate $10* online and receive a tracking label to Follow Your Box** and discover the destination of your shoebox gift.
* Your $10 per gift donation is critical in helping OCC with shoebox processing, shipping, and gospel materials. - DROP OFF – Place a rubber band around each closed shoebox and drop it off at Vansickle Baptist Church by Sun, November 16th. If you are unable to drop your box off before this date, then you can drop it off at one of the “official” drop-off locations during National Collection Week.