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Local Churches Join Samaritan’s Purse ‘Shoe Box Drive’
Samaritan’s Purse calls packing shoe box gifts “an activity for all ages"

Local Churches Join Samaritan’s Purse ‘Shoe Box Drive’

POTTSTOWN PA – Volunteers at five local churches are preparing now to collect and deliver gift-filled shoe boxes during the Christmas holidays to those in need. Their efforts are part of an annual drive called “Operation Christmas Child” conducted by Samaritan’s Purse, a North Carolina-based non-profit.

More than 4,700 collection locations are scheduled to open across the country, from Nov. 18-25 (2024), to accept families’ hand-packed shoe boxes. Usually filled with toys, school supplies, and personal care items, they are intended for boys and girls between the ages of 2 and 14. For many of the young recipients, the shoe box represents their first-ever Christmas gift, Samaritan’s Purse says.

Participating locally as shoe box drop-off points are:

  • Hopewell Community Church, 1130 Commerce Dr., Pottstown;
  • Limerick Cornerstone Family Church of the Nazarene, 1228 Main St., Linfield;
  • Shepherd of the Hills Calvary Chapel, 527 Hoffmansville Rd., Bechtelsville;
  • Covenant Presbyterian Church, 310 Covenant Ln., Harleysville; and
  • Valley View Community Church, 778 Sunnyside Ave., Audubon.

This year’s goal: 12 million children

Operation Christmas Child began in 1993, and since then has collected gift-filled shoe boxes to children around the nation and across the world who suffer from poverty, disease, disaster, and war. Over the past 31 years, Samaritan’s Purse reports churches and other groups have collected and delivered more than 220 million shoe boxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories.

Its 2024 goal is to reach 12 million children.

“Shoe box packing is fun for individuals, families and groups,” the organization adds. It offers an online, step-by-step guide describing the process. The local churches will operate during November to gather the boxes and ensure holiday delivery to their destinations. For those who want to participate but lack the time, online donations also are accepted to purchase shoe box gifts.

Photo provided to Travels With The Post by Samaritan’s Purse