Church helping send toys to kids all over
WARNER ROBINS -- Shoeboxes filled with small toys and gift items are pouring into Shirley Hills Baptist Church this week to be sent to children around the world.
Through Monday, it's collections week for the 2015 Operation Christmas Child project, and Shirley Hills is the Warner Robins relay point where individuals, groups and churches can drop off packages for the long journey into the hands of child.
Tina DaSilva, who coordinates the relay point, said about 3,600 packed shoeboxes typically pass through the relay point. She said Shirley Hills members typically provide about 500 shoeboxes, but as many as 700 may come from a single church. More typically, she said, most groups bring a dozen, 30 or 40, or maybe 100 or 200.
And she said individuals and single families often bring just one box or one from each family member.
"Each one is important," she said. "Each one means one more child will get a gift, and each gift means one more child will be delighted by someone's thoughtfulness -- and more."
Plus, DaSilva said there's still time to pack a box and get it to Shirley Hills and Operation Christmas Child.
"You can drop by Shirley Hills and we can give you a brochure with a shoebox label for a girl or a boy that tells you how to prepare your gift. Or you can go to our website and find instructions and print a label for yourself from right there."
DaSilva said if a label is printed from the website, there's also the opportunity to have it bar-coded so the senders can track their gifts when it goes abroad.
She said tracking requires $7 and the label has to be printed from the website. Samaritan's Purse, sponsor of Operation Christmas Child, asks for -- but doesn't require -- a $7 donation with all packages to help with shipping.
DaSilva said it's important to read instructions about what toys to buy and how to prepare the box. Each box is designated for a boy or girl of a certain age and can include small toys, what she called one "wow" toy, school supplies, personal hygiene items and similar items.
Not allowed are such items as liquids, toy guns and other war-related toys, chocolate and used or damaged goods.
She says it's all made clear in the instructions.
"It's a lot of fun shopping and preparing a box," she said. "When my children were younger we did it with a couple of other families and had a great time together. Now, my Sunday School class does it together and we buy things through the year. We'll say, 'OK, this month is small-toy month or school-supply month.' Of course right around the beginning of school is a good time to get a bargain on school supplies. It's fun, but it's all the more fun when you pack the boxes together and think about the child who'll get it and what the box will mean to them."
DaSilva said she's heard over and over again how just the right box somehow got to just the right child, such as a child who can't attend school because of not having school supplies getting a shoebox over stuffed with paper, pads, pens, pencils, glue sticks and scissors.
That's the "delight" aspect DaSilva mentioned.
She said the "more" aspect deals with more eternal values.
"God really watches over these boxes and thrills children with them, I'm sure of it," DaSilva said. "But what's even more wonderful is that there's a gospel tract in each one plus, if they want to, each child is given the opportunity to take part in a discipleship class to learn more about Jesus. The things in the box are great but they're perishable. These other things are imperishable. Anyone willing to pack a box can play a part in the whole thing, and the more boxes we have the more children we can give them to. "
DaSilva said those interested can drop by the Shirley Hills relay point for information. Relay point hours can be found at www.samaritanspurse.org by clicking on "pack a box" then scrolling down and searching Warner Robins in the locations finder. She said along the way there's pretty much all the information anyone would need to pack boxes and get them on their way to a child.
Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child officials say the ministry has delivered shoeboxes to more than 124 million children affected by war, poverty, natural disasters and other crises in more than 150 countries through partnerships with local churches.
Contact writer Michael W. Pannell at mwpannell@gmail.com.
Operation Christmas Child Relay Point
Address: Shirley Hills Baptist Church, 615 Corder Road, Warner Robins
Coordinator: Tina DaSilva
Collection dates: Through Nov. 23
Website: www.samaritanspurse.org
This story was originally published November 18, 2015 at 9:59 AM with the headline "Church helping send toys to kids all over ."