SAMARITANS Purse is a not-for profit organisation that brings emergency relief and development assistance to people around the world.
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The organisation’s man project Operation Christmas Child aims to bring joy and put smiles on the faces of thousands of children living in poverty by giving them shoe boxes filled with gifts.
Operation Christmas Child donated a record 342,814 shoe boxes to children in seven countries in 2015.
Area co-ordinator Ann Rohde said she had taken great pleasure in making three trips to give children boxes.
“When a child opens a shoe box they open more than a present, they are opening up a world of life-changing opportunities,” she said.
“Through Operation Christmas Child, Samaritan’s Purse is able to connect with communities and meet other vital needs including safe water, sanitation, education and health.”
Shoe boxes donated by Australians are sent to south-east Asia and the south Pacific with Victoria contributing 58,850 boxes, given to children in Cambodia, Fiji and Thailand.
“For most of these children this would have been the first time they had ever received a gift,” Mrs Rohde said.
People can fill shoe boxes with gifts for boys and girls aged two to four, five to nine or 10 to 14, with six categories of gifts and at least one item form each category.
The categories are something for hygiene, something for school, something to wear, something to play with, something to love and something special.
The shoe boxes are available all over the Wimmera and southern Mallee to purchase and fill with gifts.
Visit one of the following retailers or phone the personal volunteers - Horsham at Horsham Disposals; Edenhope at Melindari Fashions; Nhill at Earthly Treasures; Kaniva at Heartfelt; Rainbow at the Rainbow Newsagency; Warracknabeal at the Christian Bookshop; Donald at the HUB; Hopetoun via Rose Robertson on 5083 3132; Stawell via Marie Mackie on 5358 5587 or Sam Allan on 5358 2118; Ararat via Peter Fleming on 0438 381 043.
Mrs Rohde said the organisation wanted to get the boxes to the children before Christmas and would like them returned to the contact in mid-October.
For further information, people can contact Mrs Rohde on 5381 2180 or 0467 239 493.
