Operation Christmas Child
By Cindy Landon, Photos by Art Rew

This was our first year doing this wonderful outreach project. Both services were very involved and that makes it even better. The promotion started on Oct. 31 and the response was great! That is when the fun started. Fun if your special project turned out to be a shopper and fulfilling when you think about the smiles these simple toys will put on the faces of the children that receive them.

For those that may not know, Operation Christmas Child is a program from Samaritan's Purse, which is run by Franklin Graham. The shoeboxes get collected from all over the United States and other countries as well. Last year they distributed 6.6 million shoeboxes to children who otherwise may not get anything. Many are in war ravaged countries and others are in third world nations that live in poverty.

In each shoebox is the Gospel message in the language of that area. Those children get to see God's love in action. Many are getting a gift for the very first time and have hope for the future because of the simple act of giving.

Christ UMC members took on this outreach as they have with so many other acts of charity and went beyond what we thought possible. I would have to say that credit belongs to the Lord but the people involved in this were Jesus with skin on! On Friday Oct. 19, a group got together to help organize donations and sort out toys and even put planes together.

On Sunday more donations of money and toys came in right up to the time to pack the shoeboxes. During our PTP (Praise thru Play) on Sunday evening, a great community of people came to help pack shoeboxes. I do believe the little child that is in all of us came out that night. In less than 2 hours, 133 shoeboxes were filled, notes of love and hope were written and put in with them and the suburban loaded ready to go to the drop-off location. On Monday morning the shoeboxes along with 665 dollars for shipping was dropped off at the collection site. That is when the Lord said "Job well done my good and faithful servants."