Gracie O’Loughlin regularly witnesses groups working shoulder-to-shoulder for a common purpose as part of her role with Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse that shares the Gospel with children around the world through outreach events and shoebox gifts. When she and several colleagues recently volunteered with U.S. Disaster Relief, another project of Samaritan’s…
Operation Christmas Child
Why I Pack Shoeboxes: One-Word Witnesses
On social media this fall, Operation Christmas Child asked shoebox packers to pick one word that describes why they send gifts to boys and girls in need around the world. We thought you’d be encouraged to see some of the responses from our volunteers and staff as you prayerfully prepare to fill your own boxes…
Operation Christmas Child
Children in Benin Hear the Gospel through Simple Shoebox Gifts
Nine-year-old Gladys flashed a big smile as she recounted the day she received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox gift. The special items inside included a blanket folded neatly and arranged amid school supplies, a flashlight that her father needed, and other cherished items. Opening the shoebox gift was like opening up a new chapter of…
Operation Christmas Child
Former Gang Member in Peru Trains to Be a Missionary
Luis Trevejo Peña, 20, had a rough start. Abandoned by his father at age 5, he, his mother, Ricci, and three older brothers were left to fend for themselves in San Martin de Porres, Peru. Luis resented seeing other children with their fathers and wished he could have that sort of love, too. Perhaps as…
Operation Christmas Child
Franklin Graham and Family Distribute Shoebox Gifts in Antigua
On Dec. 28-29, Franklin Graham and members of his extended family traveled to the Caribbean island of Antigua to distribute shoebox gifts to children in need. Two Operation Christmas Child outreach events took place on Friday at local churches and two more occurred on Saturday, blessing a total of 450 children. The Grahams continue the…
Franklin Graham
Newsletter January 2024
Franklin Graham Update | January Franklin Graham Update | January AFTER the SHOEBOX... The Greatest Journey Begins Dear Friend, As I write this, more than 11 million Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts are just beginning their journey—crossing oceans, mountains, and deserts—to delight children in more than 100 countries around the world. We thank God for everyone who prayerfully packed these gifts, and we…
Operation Christmas Child
Outsiders Welcomed In
Outsiders. That’s what the Baka people are known as in the Central African nations of Gabon and Cameroon. Members of this unreached people group are relegated to the margins of society and given little access to education or social services. Tragically, in addition to this discrimination, they have virtually no personal access to the Gospel…
Operation Christmas Child
Shoebox Gift Distribution Brings New Life, New Ministry in Ecuador
Jamyleth’s life changed for good when she was an 8-year-old girl living on a farm in Riobamba, Ecuador. It was then she received a gift-filled Operation Christmas Child shoebox. “I was very excited,” Jamyleth, now 22, recalls. “I had received presents from my parents before, but nothing like the shoebox. My favorite thing in the…
Our Ministry
Operation Heal Our Patriots 2022 Special Report
Hope for the Journey Dear Friend, The wounded veterans who participate in Operation Heal Our Patriots tell us some heartbreaking stories. After multiple combat deployments, many return home with post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, and other physical and emotional wounds. All of the couples who come to our Samaritan Lodge Alaska are in fragile…
Operation Christmas Child
Wheaton College Students Partner with Operation Christmas Child in Ecuador
Students from Wheaton College traveled to Ecuador in December with Operation Christmas Child, coming alongside the local church to spread the Good News of Jesus Christ and joining in the joy as children pealed open their one-of-a-kind shoebox gifts. Samaritan’s Purse has long worked in Ecuador, first delivering gift-filled shoeboxes there in 1997 and in…
