November 16, 2015
by Naomi Kotzur
On Saturday, November 7, twenty South Burnett volunteers travelled to Brisbane to assist the Samaritan’s Purse organisation process gift-filled shoeboxes for children in countries like Vietnam, Cambodia and Papua New Guinea.
They were volunteering to help Operation Christmas Child, which is run by Samaritan’s Purse.
Operation Christmas Child packs shoeboxes full of Christmas gifts which are delivered to children in these and many other countries each year.
The “gifts” are often everyday items such as combs, toothbrushes and other household items that Australian families often take for granted, but which are rare treasures for children living in Third World countries.
The children also receive a booklet sharing the message of Jesus, and have further opportunities to learn more through the local churches in the receiving countries if they so choose.
Queensland has processed 30,000 shoebox gifts so far this year, and organisers hope to reach their target of 60,000 shoeboxes by Christmas.
The South Burnett group, which was made up of volunteers from various Kingaroy churches and the general community, were able to process and pack more than 2000 shoeboxes on the day they spent at the the Samaritan’s Purse warehouse in Yeronga.
Organisers said they were encouraged by – and very much appreciated – the generosity of Harvey and Andrew Dascombe from Purser’s Coaches, who provided a coach free of charge which allowed the volunteers to travel to Brisbane.
They also wanted to acknowledge the generosity shown by Kingaroy Freight Express, who delivered 1521 locally-prepared shoe boxes from Kingaroy to the Yeronga warehouse.
Finally, they wanted to express their sincere thanks to those in Kingaroy and our surrounding communities who have filled shoe boxes with items to bring joy to children who would otherwise rarely – if ever – get to experience the joy of Christmas.
It is exciting to see so many schools, churches and individuals becoming involved in Operation Christmas Child each year.
If you would like to find out more or learn how you can be a part of this project, email local area coordinator Jenny Nixon or schools coordinator Naomi Kotzur.
