Program fills shoe boxes with items kids need
By Becky Barclay
Published in News on October 2, 2017 5:50 AM
Some children don't get gifts for Christmas, so Samaritan's Purse started Operation Christmas Child in 1993, just for children around the world.
Each year, people all over the country prepare shoe boxes filled with various items for Samaritan's Purse to distribute to children.
Trellis Phillips, who was the local coordinator for 15 years, said shoe boxes are collected in Wayne and Lenoir counties and taken to Adamsville Baptist Church to be trucked to Samaritan's Purse. In past years, between 11,000 and 12,000 shoe boxes have been donated by residents.
"Anyone can do a shoe box," Ms. Phillips said. "You can pick up a pamphlet that explains the process. But you pick if you want to prepare a shoe box for a girl or boy and what age group.
"Then you go out and buy things like school supplies, theme books, crayons, pencils, pencil sharpener, coloring books, things that can be used in school. You can also include one or two articles of clothing, like a T-shirt, baseball cap and socks, along with two or three small toys. For girls, you can also include small dolls, hair accessories and beads."
"Some of these children live in slums and places where they scrounge for food, and hygiene items are needed," Ms. Phillips said. "They also need soap, but bar soap, not liquids. They are not allowed to send liquids, medications, toothpaste or candy."
But you can include a comb and toothbrushes.
Ms. Phillips said people are asked to pack each shoe box good and tight, but don't overpack it where it will bulge and tear when being transported.
Then you attach a label that comes with the pamphlet and mark it for the age group.
Those doing a shoe box are also asked to put $9 in an envelope and include it with the box for shipping. Then drop your box off at Adamsville Church Nov. 13 through 20.
"This has always been a love of mine," Ms. Phillips said. "I got involved when Franklin Graham brought it to North Carolina to start it. My grandchildren told me about it because they were fixing shoe boxes in Raleigh as children and now they are grown women.
"That first year we did them, we filled four boxes. It was too late to take them to the collection center, so we sent them UPS to Boone to be sent out with the rest of the shoe boxes."
Ms. Phillips said a local woman makes a lot of scarves and donates them to be placed in the shoe boxes.
When Ms. Phillips goes into the local stores to buy a lot of supplies at once for the shoe boxes, she said people ask her what she's going to do with it all. She tells them about Operation Christmas Child and that gets the word out to even more people.
"It's a wonderful ministry to needy children around the world," she said. "It's a blessing that we can fill a shoe box with things children need. You can easily fill a shoe box for just $10.
"It's also a way of sharing Christ with these children. Samaritan's Purse sends a little booklet that tells about Jesus."
Ms. Phillips said that when most people start doing the program, they don't want to stop.
"You just want to do more every year," she said. "We've had people start out with one or two boxes and add to that number each year."
For more information about Operation Christmas Child, call 919-778-4150.