Shoe Boxes Show Up in Vans, Trucks and Cars
Shoe boxes arrived all day yesterday to the Operation Christmas Child collection center at 140 South Jefferson Street in downtown Kittanning.
by David Croyle
Thousands of shoe boxes packed with items for children in third world countries are expected to be dropped off this week in Armstrong County during the annual collection week for Operation Christmas Child.
The project is part of the international relief organization known as Samaritan’s Purse - which was founded by Dr. Billy Graham’s son, Franklin.
Janet McKelvey is the Missions chairperson at the First United Methodist Church in Kittanning who headed up their local church campaign.
“We’ve done this for the last couple of years. One of the women whose older mother did 11 boxes on her own last year. They sat her at a table and she coordinated her boxes. She was so excited about doing that in her life that the daughter bought 100 of these boxes.”
The boxes that were purchased were then given out to congregational members who volunteered to fill them with personal hygene items, small pieces of clothing such as socks or gloves, and a special toy. Everyone in the families were able to participate.
“Children are very excited about them to help pick out the things. We did it for about six weeks. We had people come in, get their box, then bring it in.”
McKelvey said many of the members were active in the project.
“The exciting thing for this year for us is we have a dentist as a member who donated about 200 tubes of toothpaste - for both adults and children. He also donated about that many tooth brushes. Then we had an elderly man whose wife had always collected beanie babies. He donated 200 of them. It has just been wonderful to have different people come forward with things like that that they have available to them.”
Participation was more than just physical as the spiritual aspect was emphasized.
“We had a special prayer for them yesterday. for the children that these will go to. Even our minister, Wade Berkey, had the children during the Children’s Sermon touch a box so the children were involved in that prayer.”
The project has energized the congregation and McKelvey said it has been an outlet of ministry for them.
“It has been very exciting. We love doing it. We have seen the videos of (the boxes) going to the children in all kinds of areas of the world. That has been very meaningful for us.”
McKelvey brought in 67 boxes yesterday, and plans at least one more trip this week to deliver last minute ones.
The collection is being held in the Family-Life Social Hall at 140 South Jefferson Street (rear) now through Sunday, November 22. Regular hours are 9AM-3PM, but they will accommodate anyone who needs evening drop-off hours.
To arrange evening hours or for other inquiries, call 724-548-8000, ext. 8500.
Nearly a thousand boxes were collected yesterday. The Kittanning Paper will publish the daily total on its front page all this week.
Local News | David Croyle November 17, 2015
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