For the Samaritan’s Purse team that followed the recent airlift of 65,000 gift-filled shoe boxes to China, it was a heartwarming experience to hand the first gifts to boys and girls with special needs, living in a home for orphaned and abandoned children.

Most of the 61 children living in the Jing Yang Orphan House in Deyang were abandoned at birth because they had physical or mental challenges, including clubfoot, cleft lip, and Down syndrome. Some infant girls were abandoned simply because the parents had wanted a boy.

Ten-year-old Xinyi saw every gift in her shoe box as a special treasure. A sweet-natured girl with trusting brown eyes and a gentle smile, Xinyi suffered brain damage in an accident when she was 3. When she was well enough to leave the hospital, Xinyi’s parents left her at the orphanage.

A boy named Gao is an energetic 10 year old with a contagious smile and a generous heart. He also has Down syndrome. Gao’s eyes lit up when he found a pair of metallic-blue socks in his shoe box. He quickly grabbed the socks and ran to a little girl named Yu Min, presenting them to her as a gift. In Chinese, Gao means “Happy.”

Yu Min walks with a crutch and is tiny for a 13-year-old. The Jing Yang Orphan House is the only home she has ever known.

“My favorite gift is the rabbit,” she said, touching the white stuffed animal in her box. “And my favorite color is pink.”

Yu Min needs close medical care and is unable to attend school like some of the other children, but she has dreams for the future.

“I want to work here and help the children,” she said. “The ladies who work here are nice. They care about us.”

Many boxes contained photographs and greetings from the American children or families who packed them with gifts. A special message from Franklin Graham, written in Chinese, was also given out with the boxes. The heart of message was an expression of God’s love for the children: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes on Him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

“To hold and play with children in an orphanage who were abandoned because of the shame of simple physical challenges was a gift I will never forget,” said Randy Riddle, who directs domestic activities for Operation Christ Child in the U.S. “This opportunity was a fresh reminder that every shoe box gift is a Gospel opportunity.”

Operation Christmas Child shoe boxes are being trucked to towns and villages across the 2008 earthquake zone in Sichuan province. Soon, thousands of children in local schools will receive gift-filled boxes and an invitation to receive God’s gift of salvation.

“This is an opportunity to tell hurting children, victims of a massive earthquake, that they are not forgotten,” Riddle said. “They will know that there are people who love them, and Jesus loves them, too.”

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Samaritan's Purse , China , Operation Christmas Child , God’s Special Children