Asheville – Samaritan’s Purse’s Operation Christmas Child is happening again throughout the United States. This week is when you must turn in your boxes for distribution — November 13-20th. The time is NOW to sign up and bring a shoebox to be sent out. Here in Western North Carolina, you can find almost 20 locations to drop off a box. You just pack the average size cardboard or plastic box — for a girl or a boy, the ages: 2 – 4 years old, 5 – 9, and 10-14 with Christmas cheer. Samaritan’s Purse asks that you pray continuously for the family to be receptive to the Good News of Jesus Christ, and to pray for the Pastor of the church who receives the shoebox gift as well as for their community. You are also asked to include a $10 per box donation to cover shipping and other costs.
More specific information can be found at: https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/pack-a-shoe-box/
To mention a few of the drop-off locations in this area: The Beverly Hills Baptist Church at 777 Tunnel Road, the Radiant Church at 3839 Sweeten Creek Road, in Arden, the Fairview Baptist Church at 32 Church Road in Fairview, the French Broad Baptist Church at 182 Grandview Lane in Hendersonville, the Newfound Baptist Church at 2605 New Leicester Highway, Leicester, or the First Baptist Church of Black Mountain at 130 Montreat Road in Black Mountain. More drop-off locations in this area can be found at: https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/drop-off-locations/ The week of November 13 – 20th is the time to drop off your shoebox filled with wonderful Christmas joy items for a child in need. Don’t delay.
Some 80,000 short-term volunteers serve in more than 4,000 drop-off locations open across the country every year during National Collection Week, the third week in November. Each shoebox collected then travels to one of Samaritan Purse’s processing centers to be inspected and prepared for international shipment by 90,000 volunteers. All of this is supported by the 30,000 volunteers in Samaritan Purse’s prayer network. The project delivers not only the joy of what, for many kids, is their first gift ever, but also gives them a tangible expression of God’s love. This will undoubtedly help them understand the joy of Christmas and remember it throughout their life. You can activate your shoebox tracking label at samaritanspurse.org/activate.
How Operation Christmas Child Began
In the summer of 1993, Samaritan’s Purse President Franklin Graham received a call from a man in England asking if he’d be willing to fill shoeboxes with gifts for children in Eastern Europe. Time slipped away and Graham put it all on the back burner for the future. Around Thanksgiving the friend called again to find out if anything had happened. With some quick action and telephone calls to Pastor Ross Rhoads of Calvary Church of Charlotte, the congregation managed to fill 11,000 shoeboxes. Other added gifts poured in from Canada, and happily Samaritan’s Purse managed to send 28,000 shoebox gifts to children in the Balkans that year—an unbelievable number on such short notice!
Every year since, Samaritan’s Purse has collected shoebox gifts filled with toys, school supplies, and many other items, including hygiene items, for children around the world. It has been an amazing project, bringing unexpected to joy to a child. Since 1993, more than 209 million children in more than 170 countries and territories have received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox. More than 9,000 year-round volunteers get the word out about the Samaritan’s Purse project across the United States and elsewhere, and receive boxes to bring joy to so many during the Christmas time.
Other Holiday Possibilities
As the Thanksgiving holidays approach many organizations are looking even further ahead—-to Christmas and those in need of gifts. They want to be sure to include those in financial difficulties, particularly those with children in the house. They are taking the time to collect and distribute the gifts, so they will be sure to reach someone in need of Christmas cheer, primarily a child. The Henderson County Toy Run takes place Saturday, November 18th, with registration from 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM at the Bill Moore Community Park in Fletcher. There will be a BBQ Lunch Door Prizes and a 50/50 Drawing. This is an amazing event with a long parade of motorcyclists, driving down the interstate, carrying their gifts to be placed on the steps of the Hendersonville Court House to be later given to a local child in need of a Christmas gift.
The U.S. Marine Corps Reserve has a Toys for Tots Program. The basic mission of the Marine Toys for Tots Program is to collect new unwrapped toys and distribute those toys to less fortunate children at Christmas. The Marine Toys for Tots program asks for a gift of a new toy, to help bring the joy of Christmas and send a message of hope to America’s less fortunate children.Western North Carolina Toys for Tots has started its annual holiday tradition at the Asheville Outlets. You can join 99.9 Kiss Country’s Eddie Foxx and the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve at Asheville Outlets Thursday, November 16 through Saturday, November 18th for the annual Toys for Tots Toy Drive Marathon. Drivers can pull up, stay inside their vehicles and hand off donations safely to volunteers. For information on how to contribute or participate, go to asheville-nc.toysfortots.org
There are undoubtedly many other ways to contribute to someone else’s need at the holiday season. Perhaps some folks would prefer their gifts be received locally. Many churches and businesses have an angel tree with specific requests of gifts for those on an ornament — with size, age and requests — on the ornament to be returned, usually unwrapped for that person by a specific date. Of course communities like Elida Homes, with a long 120 history of helping with foster care in the Asheville area has listed sponsors with wish lists for those in their care. You need to Contact Tcampuzano@eliada.org for more information oh how best to help. Some of the current needs could be simple and easy for a donor to fulfill, such as Play Doh! or simply washcloths! Or if you wish to be more involved many ways can be suggested.
The Black Mountain Home for Children posts an appropriate item wish list on Amazon and recognizes that holidays are especially difficult for children in foster care. That’s why they make sure their youth have bountiful meals, fun activities, and gifts from their own special Christmas wish-list! This list can be found on Amazon – https://www.amazon.com/registries/gl/guest-view/S29WVU682YXU– and the items are shipped directly to the Black Mountain Home.
Christmas is just around the corner. Now is the time to think of others who need your help.