Nov. 16 – 23: National Collection Week for Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Gifts
Atlanta families, churches and groups are not waiting until Thanksgiving Day to express gratitude. Instead, this week they are giving back by lovingly packing gifts of joy for children around the world living in extreme poverty or affected by war, disease, and natural disaster. For many of these children, it will be the first gift they have ever received.
Nov. 16 – 23, thousands of Atlanta-area residents will pack 87,000 shoebox gifts filled with a “Wow” item—like a doll or soccer ball—and other fun toys, school supplies, hygiene items and notes of encouragement. Operation Christmas Child, a project of the international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse, will deliver the gifts to children in need overseas.
In the Atlanta area, three sites will serve as collection points for shoebox gifts to be dropped off by local residents:
Church of the Apostles
3585 Northside Parkway NW
Atlanta, GA 30327
Mon, Wed and Fri: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Tues and Thurs: 3 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Sat: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m.
Sun: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Mon: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Columbia Drive UMC
2067 Columbia Drive
Decatur, GA 30032
Mon – Mon: 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m.
First Baptist Atlanta
4400 N Peachtree Road
Atlanta, GA 30338
Mon and Weds: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Tues and Thurs: 4 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Fri: 4 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Sat: 12 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Sun: 1 p.m. – 3 p.m.
Mon: 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
After being dropped off at Atlanta collection sites, these boxes will make the long journey overseas, traveling by any means necessary—boat, plane, train and even elephant—until they reach the hands of children in need. In 2015, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect enough shoebox gifts to reach more than 11 million children, with 87,000 coming from the Atlanta area. Since 1993, the project has delivered shoebox gifts to more than 124 million children in over 150 countries and territories.
It’s not too late to get involved, and anyone can participate in this life-changing project for children around the world. Although this week is National Collection Week, shoebox gifts are collected year-round at the Samaritan’s Purse headquarters in Boone, North Carolina.
With a computer or mobile device, anyone can conveniently pack a personalized Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift on the Samaritan’s Purse website. These gifts of hope will go to children in some of the hardest-to-reach countries. Go to samaritanspurse.org/occ to select toys and gift items, write a note of encouragement, and “pack” them in a shoebox.
Participants can follow their box online to discover where in the world their gift is delivered by using the donation form found at samaritanspurse.org/occ.
Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse, an international Christian relief and evangelism organization headed by Franklin Graham. For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, visit samaritanspurse.org/occ.
