Operation Christmas Child has Mill Creek Baptist Church as a collection site

Children roamed determinedly among tables filled with items to be packed into shoe boxes. Youth assisted the smaller children place items in a box. Operation Christmas Child is in production all across the nation. At Mill Creek Baptist Church on Wed Nov. 7, the happiness of gift giving filled the room. 15 preschool age kids, 5 school aged kids and 7 youth filled boxes, as many adults assisted folding boxes and provided technical help.  Operation Christmas Child supplies an age-related list for both boys and girls shoe boxes where the only gifts may come from many good people across America.

Operation Christmas Child is a yearly gift box ministry of Samaritan’s Purse an organization run by Rev. Franklin Graham in North Carolina. The boxes are distributed worldwide to children and youth and are accompanied by a message of hope in Jesus Christ. Cindy Markham presented a book of the good news of Jesus Christ that accompanies the boxes to spread the Gospel. “It is taught by volunteers in the particular country,” she said.

An entire church can participate in the mission by buying items for a box or helping to pack and wrap boxes or get them ready to be shipped. it is uplifting for people of all ages to participate.

For the past two years, Mill Creek Baptist has been a collection site where others may bring filled shoe boxes. Markham and Josephine Powell head up the project. For the church itself, Pat Shotwell is the muscle behind a project that Markham described as, “It begins again the day after we ship off the boxes.”

Last year, they shipped 601 boxes from the church. Kim Lawrence of Lawrence Transfer drives the truck lo Salem to the regional collection spot.

Twenty-four volunteers have signed up to help collect the boxes from the community in eight days. Markham can be reached at 540-354-9950 to hear a list of times from Nov. 12- 19 for Drop-off week at various times of the day and evening. “We hope to have even more boxes this year,” said Markham.

Story, photo and FB video Cathy Benson