It’s almost unbelievable that Earnestine Reese survived the EF4 tornado that barreled through Lee County, Alabama, on March 3, 2019—killing 23 people, leveling neighborhoods, and displacing families. As the storm hit, she huddled in her bathroom with her daughter, son-in-law, and grandson, praying for God’s protection. The twister tore directly over their house, ripping off…
Military Marriages Experience Restoration in Alaska
When Javy Castro and his wife arrived at Samaritan Lodge Alaska for Week 6 of the 2026 Operation Heal Our Patriots’ summer season, he thought he knew why they had come. However, during his stay at camp, he came to a surprising realization. “I came out here to fix my relationship with my wife,” he…
Crisis & Disaster Response
Helping Homeowners After Flooding in Spain
Our Disaster Assistance Response Team is hard at work in eastern Spain after the region received over a foot of rain on October 29, causing the Magro and Turia river basins and the Poyo canal to overflow. The flash flooding claimed the lives of over 200 people and an unknown number are still missing. As…
50 Years of Ministry
Rebuilding Homes for 5,000 Families After Hurricane Mitch
Hurricane Mitch was the worst storm of the 20th century in the western hemisphere, killing over 11,000 people in Honduras and Nicaragua in 1998. The late-October storm destroyed or damaged more than 80,000 houses in Honduras. Samaritan’s Purse launched the largest construction project in our history and in the four years following the storm, we…
Animals, Agriculture & Livelihoods
Planting Seeds of Faith in Famine-Scarred Niger
The lean season was once a season of despair for many families in Karofane, a village in rural Niger. Halima,* a mother of ten, would watch hopelessly as her children grew thin and weak. Their hair would turn brittle and bleached—common signs of malnutrition. “I would take them to the traditional healer, but still they…
Operation Christmas Child
American Heritage Girls & Operation Christmas Child
American Heritage Girls and Operation Christmas Child National Collection Week Connect Your Troop to Operation Christmas Child Welcome to the 2026 Shoebox Challenge! 2026 Shoebox Challenge Collection Form Join Troops around the country united in one common focus—equipping the next generation with the tools to treasure and cultivate their relationship with their Savior and King, Jesus Christ. Packing…
Operation Christmas Child
Year-Round Volunteering with Operation Christmas Child
Volunteer Year-Round Volunteer Join a local team to promote Operation Christmas Child in your community all year long! Volunteers serve year-round to recruit and train participants, as well as to coordinate the collection of shoebox gifts. This requires leaders and prayer warriors, people with skills in logistics and administration, and those with the gift of…
Operation Christmas Child
Official Shoebox Gift Suggestions
What Goes in My Shoebox? Make Your Gift Fun, Full, and Personalized. For children around the world, a shoebox is often their very first gift. Given together with the Good News of Jesus Christ, it communicates God’s love to a boy or girl in need. So, it is important to make sure your gift is…
Operation Christmas Child
Follow Your Box Look-Up
Follow Your Box Look‑Up Tool Discover Your Shoebox Gift's Destination Once shoeboxes are processed by late December or early January, you can check country destinations here if you donated through Follow Your Box and attached the bar code label to your shoeboxes. If you recently dropped off your shoebox, it is likely that it has not…
