The Dyson Family packed a shoe box for a girl in need for the 2009 Operation Chrstmas Child Campaign. Julie – the girl who received the box had it handed to her by the people from Living Light Foursquare church in Port Moresby. See how Julie and the Dyson Family react when the box is opened!
“A big smile on her face – how do you compare with that?” (more…)
As a follow-up to the disaster recovery effort 250,000 Haitian children will be given shoe box gifts by local churches and believers. Many of these children have lost their homes, loved ones, and even the few toys and possessions they held dear. We believe that God can use these simple shoe box gifts in the hands of local believers to bring them hope in their darkest hour and share the love of God in a very practical way…
Samaritan’s Purse Australia is excited to dedicate staff, resources and volunteers to prepare 8,000 of the 250,000 shoe boxes that are going to Haiti. Because of the urgency and timing of this project we are bulk purchasing suitable items to go in these boxes for each gender and age group.
Each shoe box will take approx 10 minutes to fill – so we have a task that will take 80,000 minutes (or 55 days) if one person was to do it – this is why we are asking for the assistance from you, your friends, family, church and or community groups to make a difference for 8,000 Haitian children.
When: 2nd August to 8th September 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday
Where: 41-45 Belmore Street, Ryde NSW 2112
Please contact Craig Jennings (NSW State Manager) on 1800 684 300 or email nsw@samaritanspurse.org.au to to let us know when you are coming. Groups are welcome – we can take group sizes up to 60 people at the same time. Please let us know when you are coming as there is limited space in the warehouse.
At the Vaturekuka Prison in Labasa, Fiji, more than 80 children of inmates received Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes at a special ceremony their fathers were able to attend.
Prison Supervisor Manasa Rakabikabi presented the gifts to the children during the Christmas celebration inside the prison walls. “These men all belong to a family, village, church and community,” he said. “So they should be loved and accepted when they are discharged.” (more…)
Our friends at the Kellyville Anglican Church were so thrilled by their contribution to Operation Christmas Child that they wanted to inspire you to participate this year and reach even more children. Their pastor gives four great reasons to get involved: (more…)
Dear Friend,
My name is Pannawadee Amm. I’m very glad to receive the present that you give us. I like every pieces in the box especially the dolls because I never got any before. My mother went to give her thanks to the teachers at the church because she doesn’t have money to buy them and she is very thankful. I’m really happy and I will hug the dolls every night before going to bed. Now I and mother started to go to church because I feel that people there love me and every other child.
I thank you with all my heart. (more…)
The South Pacific Tsunami that washed away coastal villages in Samoa on September 2009, claimed at least 140 lives, and left thousands of people in need of emergency assistance. Samaritan’s Purse immediately mobilised a Disaster and Assistance Response Team (DART) that arrived on the ground within days of the Tsunami.
We partnered with Reverend Nu’uausala Siaosi and the Apia Protestant Church to assess the situation and how to best meet the needs in the affected communities. The DART team included experienced relief workers from Samaritan’s Purse in Australia, the UK, Canada and the USA. (more…)
The Apostle Paul, quoting our Saviour, gave the definitive teaching on generosity: “And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive’” (Acts 20:35b, NKJV).
We’ve probably all experienced the truth of that saying at times in our lives. We know the warm glow that comes from choosing the perfect gift, and seeing the appreciation of a loved one when it is opened.
One of the things I most appreciate about Operation Christmas Child is that it exemplifies selfless giving. Millions of people spend their money on the items for the boxes. They spend their time carefully putting boxes together, praying for the children who will receive the gifts, and in taking them to a collection point.
They give with no expectation of getting anything in return. Most people who put together a shoe box will never know the child who receives it. They won’t see the reaction as the child excitedly opens the lid, and looks in wonder at all the gifts.
They do it because they know how blessed it is to give − especially to give something in the name of Jesus Christ. Their generosity enables a child in another part of the world to receive a tangible expression of God’s unconditional love.
All of our projects at Samaritan’s Purse depend on caring people like you who pray, serve, and give in support of this ministry to demonstrate God’s love and share the good news.
Franklin Graham
Click to see how your gifts are changing lives around the world.
Many innocent children are caught in poverty and hostile environments, trying to survive while constantly at risk of being exploited. Samaritan’s Purse is there to offer compassion assistance and protection. (more…)
As you may know, we ask for a donationwitheveryshoeboxtocover warehousing, transport and critical training programs for our indigenous partners who receive and distribute the shoe boxes.
This past Christmas the donations fell short and we prayed earnestly for God’s provision from our supporters and we were astonished at the generous response. Within just days, we received over $70,000!
This was a wonderfully encouraging response and demonstrates how deeply committed you are not only to the children and families who are served through Samaritan’s Purse, but also to our local partners who are so crucial to carrying out our projects. Thank you!
Tatenda Makuni, a 19-year-old girl from Zimbabwe, is passionate for Operation Christmas Child for more than one reason. As a seven year old in Zimbabwe, Tatenda received her very own shoe box!
Today she is a student at the University of Western Australia. She shared her story with our warehouse volunteers when she was volunteering in the warehouse with friends from her uni… (more…)
The street has been nicknamed Dark Street for many years. Lost in the slums of Papua New Guinea, locals knew Dark Street for its nightly gun battles between young people and the police. Mothers would lay awake listening and wondering if their older children would come home, and how many more minutes before the baby woke again from the noise.
Recently, Pastor Magi shared how for generations clans fought against other clans, passing on their hate for the individuals and families of the rival clans. The hate is so deep that the children grow up believing that if they talk to their enemy they could be killed themselves. (more…)
Just before Christmas 2009 Operation Christmas Child was able to ship 306,408 gift filled shoe boxes to children in Cambodia, Fiji, PNG, Samoa, Thailand, Vanuatu and Vietnam.
We have already begun receiving reports from the filed on this year’s distribution… like this one report from the first distributions in Papua New Guinea:
“After driving for another hour (from the first distribution outside of Port Moresby) we entered the jungle then arrived at the end of the road. The team from the Living Light Foursquare Church carried the boxes on their shoulders and eventually made it to the river’s edge where there was a dingy with a motor and we piled the boxes into the boat and began the journey up the river that wound back and forth. (more…)
The distances and efforts that are made to get these boxes to children are always amazing. To think that any one of these shoeboxes tells a story of the heart of the people packing them, then that box travels from them, to Samaritan’s Purse warehouse, to the shipping yard, then overseas on a long journey, then onto the partner church, then down a long and winding road, through a jungle, down a river, then more jungle and finally into the hands of one very important child!
(more…)
As of December 16, 2009 we have shipped a total of 306,408 gift filled shoe boxes to children in Cambodia, Fiji, PNG, Samoa, Thailand, Vanuatu and Vietnam. Please continue to pray for our indigenous partners as some of these are still being delivered over the next few weeks! Our indigenous partners go to extreme lengths to get these boxes into children’s hands.
(more…)
Dear Friend,
When I wrote to you in May expressing genuine concern about a shortfall in our funding, never did I expect the outpouring of support that friends like you selflessly provided. I have been truly humbled by your generous support.
Thank you for your prayers, for your continued belief in our programs and for your truly generous gifts. I know that your support has come from the heart, for it is the heart – and the strength of God – that encourages us to lift up the lives of those in desperate need.
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