‘Tis the season: The countdown has begun for Operation Christmas Child (OCC) 2013. ’Tis the season: The countdown has begun for Operation Christmas Child (OCC) 2013. ADVERTISING Since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has delivered more than 100 million shoeboxes to underprivileged
’Tis the season: The countdown has begun for Operation Christmas Child (OCC) 2013.
Since 1993, Samaritan’s Purse has delivered more than 100 million shoeboxes to underprivileged children around the world. Individuals, groups, churches and corporations partner with OCC to fill shoeboxes with small gifts which are hand-delivered to children all over the world suffering from war, poverty, famine, disease and natural disaster.
A box distribution for churches, community groups and individuals will be held by Operation Christmas Child volunteers from 3 to 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 24, at Hilo Missionary Church at 1044 Komohana St. in Hilo. Boxes can be reserved by calling 301-707-2328. Additional program information and materials will be available that day.
Shoeboxes are filled with toys, school supplies, personal hygiene items, stuffed animals and many other gifts.
Choose the age group for a boy or girl age 2-4, 5-9 or 10-14, and begin packing an empty shoebox or a plastic shoebox-sized container. Attach an Operation Christmas Child label available from a brochure found at various local businesses, online or at a drop-off location.
Last year, more than 39,000 shoeboxes were collected from Hawaii to make an impact in the lives of children in need of love and hope in Indonesia. Of those boxes of gifts, 5,838 were created on the Big Island. Participants at both ends of the gifting program report many good feelings and experiences.
One Hawaii boy, Colby Eilerman, included a personal letter with his contact information when packing a box for OCC. At the time, Colby lived in Maryland. Six months after sending the box, Colby and his family moved to Hawaii.
The box was received by a 14-year-old boy who lives in Malawi in southeastern Africa. He was able to write a thank-you letter that was forwarded from Maryland to Colby here in Hawaii.
“Now, two boys who live so far apart have connected through the gift of a shoebox. When it was time for Colby to celebrate his own 12th birthday recently, he contributed to the project again with a big heart by asking friends to bring gifts for shoeboxes to his party instead of for him, just as he has done in the past,” said Nell Quay, East Hawaii area coordinator for OCC.
Quay said the national collection week for OCC will run from Monday, Nov. 18, through Monday, Nov. 25. Here’s the Big Island collection schedule for that week:
— Hilo: Hilo Missionary Church, Monday through Friday, 3 to 5 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m.;
— Naalehu: Naalehu Assembly of God Church, Monday through Friday, 5 to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon; Sunday, 11 a.m. to noon;
— Waimea: New Beginnings Assembly of God Church, Monday through Friday, 4 to 6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The shoeboxes also may be dropped off during collection week at any Big Island Toyota location, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
For ways to care and share in this project, please contact Quay at 987-7373. Additional information — including instructions on how to pack a shoebox — is available at www.samaritanspurse.org/occ .
