It’s National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child!
You can still pack a shoebox this week if you’d like to!
We’ve been packing shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child ever since Miss R was a tiny girl herself. We’ve loved it.
When a friend shared the ministry with me, I was delighted to know about it. I love the hands-on opportunity it provides. I sincerely love the ministry of Compassion, too. With their ministry, to give Christmas gifts, you donate and the funds are used for gifts for all the children. This definitely has its benefits and efficiency.
But, I really loved the shoe boxes because it was something my children could physically do and see when they were little.
With Compassion you get the connection and hands-on through writing letters and corresponding with your sponsored child. You can include stickers and photos and flat items in your letters.
If you are new to Operation Christmas Child here are some links………..
Go here to find out the details about how it works.
This page gives some more ideas for what to pack, along with some questions and explanations of what can and can’t go in.
AND, never fear if you should inadvertently pack an item that can’t be used in shoeboxes. I learned a few years ago that when the shoeboxes are sorted and checked, any items that don’t belong are donated to local charities or places they can be used.
Go here to print your labels online and follow your box. You’ll receive an e-mail telling you what country your box went to.
Samartitan’s Purse now has an option to build-a-shoebox online. Go right here for that opportunity. If you don’t quite have time to shop, aren’t able to pick up things for a shoebox, but would really like to help, this is a way you can!
This page has a downloadable PDF for a coloring page your child can fill out to include in the shoebox. Your kiddos can include a picture and information about themselves so the recipients can see who sent it. Scroll about halfway down the page to find the PDF.
Pray. Each and every on of us can pray over the children and families and workers and shoeboxes.
That’s a bit of back story!
Here’s my list of ten…………………………………….
1. T-shirts, flip-flops or socks.
2.Balls. Bouncy Ball. {Old Navy has machines with the bigger size bouncy-ball for 25 cents.} Foam ball. A tennis ball. Deflated kickball or soccer ball and a manual air pump to re-inflate the ball.
3. Toothbrush. Soap. Washcloth. We’ve stuck in our hand-knitted dishcloths. They could easily be washcloths.
4. Stuffed animal. It’s fun to find stuffed animals or small dolls that your own kiddos love to pack in the box. It personalizes it and it teaches kiddos the joy of sharing their love of something with others. One year we put a water baby doll in a box for a little girl. My daughter loved the doll and she packed and repacked the box so many times, placing the baby in just right.
5. Pens. Pencils. Markers. Paper. Colored Pencils. Crayons. I like to pick up these supplies when the Back-to-School sales are happening.
6. Small Lego set. I saw an awesome idea on Samaritan’s Purse fb page. Someone had sent in a picture of what they had done with a small Lego set. Their son had built it and they had taken a picture of him with it. Then they disassembled it and put pieces and instructions in a bag and attached the photo to it. So fun!
7. Hairbrush and ponytail holders or hairbows. {Or a flexi!!} 🙂
8. Glowsticks. Playdough. Balloons. Stickers.
9. Small craft kit.
10. Slinky. Small puzzle or game.
Liquid items can not be included.
Here are ideas for packing your shoebox year-round. Each month has a category for you to shop for and by shoebox collection time, you will have a well-packed shoebox to gift!
I like to keep an eye out for items throughout the year. When I find something, I take it home and throw it in a rubbermaid box that is our exclusive “shoebox items” box.
Then in October or November, I pull it out to see what we have and what we need to add. It’s not as organized as the year-round idea from Samaritan’s Purse, but it has worked for us! 🙂
My style tends to be some-organization-with-a-side-of-messy-and-a-dash-of-creativity! How about you?
