Christmas in July!

When I lived in Canada, I packed many a Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child box ... for many years.  As the Samaritan’s Purse office is in Calgary where I live, I also had the privilege to volunteer at the processing centre to help prepare the boxes to go overseas.

Always, I thought it would be neat to be part of a trip to distribute the boxes.  After I moved to Niger, I thought that was a dream to never come true … though, I am living many other dreams!

This year, my dream came true.  The Samaritan’s Purse office in Niger receives crates of the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes for distribution – and this year, my direction thought to ask if we could have some for distribution in our ministries.  The request was granted – and to celebrate year end with the children at the Kongu Mini-School … we distributed shoeboxes!

It was so much fun too see the joy on the children’s faces as they received their gifts:

I found it the most touching that the children were sad their teacher did not receive a gift as well.  The next week, when the teacher was visiting the village, one of the little girls took a wash cloth out of her gift box to give to her teacher so that he was not excluded!

Even the mothers who came with their children received a gift … after the distribution was finished, the mothers asked if they could have the empty shipping boxes.  These boxes are large and sturdy – perfect for storage in their homes!  They were as happy to receive these empty boxes as the children were to receive their gifts!

It was a wonderfully fun day filled with joy to see these children receive their gifts!

Thank you to all who pack Samaritan’s Purse Operation Christmas Child boxes … these children of Niger, and many others around the world, were blessed this year!!!