Jazmin had been longing for a doll of her own. When she received one at age 6 in an Operation Christmas Child shoebox, she thanked God for the gift. “It was very exciting,” Jazmin, now 17, recalled. “It wasn’t only a doll, it was a princess doll. I didn’t have anything like it. I thought…
Young Central Asian Shepherds Receive Shoebox Gifts
A simple drive through the countryside can become something special. Yusif*, a volunteer leader in Central Asia with Operation Christmas Child, was traveling with several team members to a ministry meeting when he spotted two shepherd boys tending their flock near the highway. Remembering that he had some gift-filled shoeboxes as well as copies of…
Good News and Great Joy for Children Around the World
The summer of 1993, Franklin Graham received a call from England asking if he would fill shoeboxes with gifts for kids in war-torn Eastern Europe. Familiar with the suffering there from his recent visits to the region, Franklin agreed. Around Thanksgiving, his office received another call from England asking about the gifts. Franklin remembered the…
Twin Sisters Pack Hundreds of Shoebox Gifts
Twin sisters Leabele McLeod and Laralea McLaughlin grew up in a poor family that struggled to make ends meet. They were so thankful any time a friend or neighbor offered them food or other essentials. Now, at age 88, Leabele and Laralea are giving back to children growing up in difficult situations. The sisters have…
An Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gave Hope to an Orphan in Honduras
Yuri Lopez grew up in 14 different orphanages in Honduras, after being separated from her family when she was 2 years old. Her life seemed hopeless. But when she was 6, Yuri received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift and “experienced hope for the very first time,” she said. “Everything in my shoebox was special,”…
Volunteers Know ‘Each Shoebox Is a Missionary’
When Carol and Pat Nelson volunteer with Operation Christmas Child, they know first-hand how much each gift can mean. Twelve years ago, the Nelsons packed their first shoebox for Operation Christmas Child and sent it off with a letter and a picture. Seven months later, they received a thank-you letter written in French from a…
Trail Life USA & Operation Christmas Child
Families Learn About Jesus Together in Mexico
As children around the world receive Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts and are invited to learn more about Jesus Christ through The Greatest Journey discipleship program, many parents are curious to find out what their children are learning. This is especially true if the adults themselves know little about Him. Soon, whole families are studying…
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Nine Children Take Special Flight Home to Mongolia After Life-Saving Heart Surgeries
Nine mothers, along with their nine children, boarded the Samaritan’s Purse DC-8 aircraft this morning in Greensboro, North Carolina, happy to be heading home to Mongolia after spending the last several months in North America. They came as part of our Children’s Heart Project to correct congenital heart defects in their little ones. Most came…