Area residents packing shoeboxes for children overseas

Families, churches and groups in Cape Girardeau and nationwide will pack shoebox gifts this week during Operation Christmas Child's National Collection Week -- and it isn't too late to get involved.

The project, led by the international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan's Purse, delivers shoeboxes filled with gifts to children in need overseas.

The shoeboxes will be filled with a "wow" item -- such as a doll or soccer ball -- and other toys, school supplies, hygiene items and notes of encouragement.

After being dropped off at a collection site, the boxes will travel overseas by boat, plane, train and even elephant until they reach the hands of children in need. For many of the children, it will be the first gift they've received, according to Samaritan's Purse.

"We have so much to be thankful for here in America. Most of us have a roof over our heads, beds with pillows to sleep on, and food on our table. But for many children living overseas, tough living conditions and extreme poverty have left them with little hope," Operation Christmas Child regional director Joe Christian said in a news release. "It is amazing to see the joy on children's faces when they receive these gifts. It can be a tangible reminder that they are loved and not forgotten, despite their difficult circumstances."

This year, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach more than 11 million children. Since 1993, the project has delivered shoebox gifts to more than 124 million children in more than 150 countries and territories.

Collection points in the region include Cape Bible Chapel, 2911 Kage Road in Cape Girardeau; St. Paul Lutheran Church, 223 W. Adams St. in Jackson; Charleston Baptist Association, 4855 Highway 77 in Benton, Missouri; and Advance First Baptist Church, 408 N. Oak St. in Advance, Missouri.

To view collection days and times at each site, to search for other sites or to get directions, visit www.samaritanspurse.org/occ.

Although it's national collection week, the shoebox gifts also are collected year-round at the Samaritan's Purse headquarters in Boone, North Carolina.

With a computer or mobile device, anyone can pack a personalized Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift on the Samaritan's Purse website.

Go online to select toys and gift items, write a note of encouragement and "pack" them in a shoebox. The gifts will go to children in some of the hardest-to-reach countries, according to the news release.

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

klamb@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3639

Pertinent addresses:

2911 Kage Road, Cape Girardeau, MO

223 W. Adams St., Jackson, MO

4855 Highway 77, Benton, MO

408 N. Oak St. in Advance, MO