Operation Christmas Child Revisited!!

I'm so glad that so many of you responded to my post about Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes! I am so passionate about this project and here's why....about two years ago a sixth grader from the Sunday School class I taught went to Africia with her mom to help pass out the Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes. I couldn't wait to hear about her trip when she came back and what she shared with our class just made me cry. You see, the school she went to didn't have enough boxes for all the children, so the teachers picked one child per family from only the poorest families. The children who were going to get shoe boxes stayed inside in the cafeteria and the other children went outside to play because they weren't going to receive a thing. Now you would think that these children receiving the boxes would be out of their minds with excitement but apparently they passed out the boxes and the children just sat there. No giggling with anticipation, no opening the boxes before they were supposed to. They just sat there and then calmly opened their box once they were given permission. They didn't smile or get excited even once their boxes were opened because they had NEVER received a present before. They didn't understand that they got to keep what was inside, that it was for them. After a few minutes the room began to buzz with excitement as they slowly realized the gift they had been given, but I'm sure it was dampened by the fact that not all the kids could share in this JOY. I can hardly stand the thought of those beautiful brown skinned children who are precious gifts of God walking home empty handed and shoeless, next to their friend carrying a box with treasures inside. It just makes me want to bring them home. So that's why we did 10 boxes last year and that's why we'll do more this year. And that's why I'm hoping that you'll get passionate about this too! It's just so easy to do!
The shoe boxes are usually due right before Thanksgiving. Many local Churches will collect them (you could easily call around to different churches and find one once it's November) and Chick-fil-a usually does too. I think you can get a coupon for a free chicken sandwich or something if you bring in a box. You'll have to check with your local chick-fil-a! Let me know if you end up doing it and can't find a donation site near you. I'll try to find one for you!
And don't forget about the Kmart deals this week. I'm planning on gettting a few free things for the shoe boxes!