Samaritan's Purse Operation Christmas Child shoebox campaign is back

Operation Christmas Child is once again underway in the Foothills and around the world.

Samaritan's Purse organizes it every year to help give underprivileged children a chance to receive a gift, many for the first time.

Frank King, with Samaritan's Purse, says packing a shoe box full of supplies and toys can change a child's life.

"The three things we always look for are school supplies, hygiene items, and toys. Even in countries where the education system is free, most often the children have to bring their own supplies and for some families that means their kids don't go to school."

King says you can pack your own shoe box, do them online or you can order one of the shoe box kits, but you have a short window to do that.

"If they go the www.Samaritans'Purse.ca and click on the Operation Christmas Child link on the homepage one of the things that they will see if that you can order shoe boxes and other supplies. And the deadline to actually put in your order to get shoe boxes for your family, your church, your community group, your book club, whatever is Friday the 27th (of October)."

Collection week is coming up soon too, from November 13 to 19. The shoe boxes will need to be dropped off at one of their three drop-off locations in the Foothills.

In High River, you can drop off filled shoe boxes at the High River Baptist Church, in Okotoks it's at the Evangelical Free Church and in Claresholm it's at the Faith Community Baptist Church.

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