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It’s the most wonderful time of the year again.
I love Operation Christmas Child (OCC). If you’re not familiar with it, let me introduce you.
OCC is an initiative by Samaritan’s Purse that seeks to bring gifts packed in shoeboxes to the poorest nations of the world. For many of the children, these shoeboxes are the only gift they have ever received. It’s a wonderful program that is excellently run and organized.
If you’d like to take part you can look up OCC online to get the logistical details, and drop your shoebox off at the Estevan Alliance Church.
I always find it fun to try and pack shoeboxes creatively and with as much stuff as possible. I recently saw an idea to take the unfolded shoebox and draw a car play mat on the cardboard, complete with roads, trees, houses etc.
You can then fold the box to fill it, and when they receive it, they can unfold it to use as a play mat. Don’t forget to include some cars.
Typically the older children seem a bit harder to buy for. Some creative ideas I’ve come across for that 10-14 year old age group are art journals, painting supplies, small sewing kits with fabric, a compact fishing kit with line and tackle, sports balls with a small pump to inflate, and maybe a mini tool set.
It’s also important to note that kids this age love to play too. And they’re likely in a culture where they don’t have access to iPhones and gaming systems that take them away from simple play time.
Many kids also don’t have proper utensils so packing in some camping utensils or collapsible bowls or cups would be a great idea. I also like to include the flat plastic water bottles. T-shirts and flip flops are also fairly compact and easy to include.
If you have any loose space between items, fill it up with stickers, googly eyes, pompoms and other craft supplies.
Lastly, we always include a letter with a hand drawn picture from the kids as well as a family picture.
