Locals send gift-filled shoeboxes
courtesy photo
Liberian children receive shoebox gifts through Operation Christmas Child.
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News from Operation Christmas Child
LAKE COUNTY — During Operation Christmas Child’s National Collection Week in Lake County, Nov. 16-23, residents generously contributed to the Kalispell Operation Christmas Child Area Team collection of 5,280 gift-filled shoeboxes for children in need.
In 2015, the project hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach more than 11 million children.
Throughout the year, Lake County churches, businesses, schools and individuals filled shoeboxes with toys, hygiene items, school supplies and notes of encouragement. The Kalispell Operation Christmas Child Area Team is now thanking the Lake County community for their gift donations already on their way to children in need worldwide.
“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,” said Operation Christmas Child Regional Director Michael Ishmael. “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.”
After being dropped off at a local collection site, these boxes will make a journey overseas, traveling by any means necessary — boat, plane, train and even elephant — until they reach the hands of children in need.
Since 1993, the project has delivered shoebox gifts to more than 124 million children in more than 150 countries and territories.
