God has used gift-filled Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes to bring millions of children and adults to faith in Jesus Christ overseas. He also uses shoeboxes to draw people to Himself here in the U.S., as Manny Ma and his wife Wen Li of Boise, Idaho, can well attest. Wen accepted Christ as her Lord and…
Operation Christmas Child
Press Release Operation Christmas Child Feb. 1 – Over 11.3 Million Shoebox Gifts Collected
Samaritan's Purse Celebrates Over 11.3 Million Shoebox Gifts Collected for Children in Need BOONE, N.C.—Millions of shoebox packers shared the true meaning of Christmas with children in need this past holiday season. Generosity throughout contributed to a successful shoebox gift collection season at drop-off locations for the Samaritan's Purse project Operation Christmas Child. Across the…
Operation Christmas Child
Delivering Good News, Great Joy in Peru
Lima, Peru—a city 10 million people call home—is a vibrant place of ministry for Operation Christmas Child. Decades of Samaritan’s Purse outreach events in this South American country have already enabled 5 million children to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ—and the work continues. The Peru National Leadership Team, made up of six experienced, passionate…
Operation Christmas Child
Operation Christmas Child Blesses Typhoon Survivors on Saipan
Typhoon Yutu destroyed thousands of homes and left families without shelter, food, and water last fall on the small Pacific island of Saipan. Cornerstone Christian Church gathered together and wept during their first worship service after the storm hit. “We were broken, as individual people and as a congregation,” said Femie Rey, whose husband, Manuelito,…
Operation Christmas Child
The Power of a Shoebox Packed with Love and Prayer
Ivanna Ramos was looking for a miracle. Ivanna, 12, lives with her single mother and three siblings down a dusty dirt road on the island of Roatán, Honduras. Her father left the family years ago, after lots of “arguments and fighting,” she said. “We always had problems for no reason.” The conflicts and her dad’s…
Operation Christmas Child
Missouri Churches Send Shoebox Gifts Off with Prayer
The farming community of Belle, Missouri, has a population of just 1,300 people, but on Sunday, they accomplished much through prayer. At their 23rd annual Operation Christmas Child dedication service at First Baptist Church, 120 people from more than 25 different churches gathered to commit 1,744 shoebox gifts to God’s purposes around the globe. Each…
Operation Christmas Child
“Mama Gump”: Her Hugs Went a Long Way
“Brother Graham, I’m Mary. Gotcha some shoeboxes for God. Where do you want ’em?” That’s how Mary Damron introduced herself to Franklin Graham, 30 years ago. A coal-miner’s wife from West Virginia with a great heart for children, Mary became a global ambassador for Operation Christmas Child during just the second year of the project.…
Operation Christmas Child
Edward and Kristy Graham Distribute Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes in Ecuador
Each year, Samaritan’s Purse distributes millions of shoebox gifts around the world to children in need. Edward Graham, the youngest son of Franklin Graham, and his wife Kristy were among those who recently traveled to Ecuador to help distribute Operation Christmas Child gifts and celebrate the graduation of those who completed The Greatest Journey, a…
Operation Christmas Child
Shoebox Gift Distribution Brings New Life, New Ministry in Ecuador
Jamyleth’s life changed for good when she was an 8-year-old girl living on a farm in Riobamba, Ecuador. It was then she received a gift-filled Operation Christmas Child shoebox. “I was very excited,” Jamyleth, now 22, recalls. “I had received presents from my parents before, but nothing like the shoebox. My favorite thing in the…
Operation Christmas Child
Shoebox Gifts Open Doors in Storm-Weary Acapulco
Children and many of their parents gathered together under the large cobertizo in La Barra de Coyuca. The young people of this small town just west of Acapulco recall, as if yesterday, the nightmare of Hurricane Otis. Even now, when it begins to rain or the winds pick up enough to shake their roofs, children…
