Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes {A Simple Guide}
For several years now we have wanted to participate with Operation Christmas Child. We would hear about it from various friends and websites, but it seems like we always found out about it too late to participate (even though you can technically pack them all year long).
This year we were determined to make it happen. Since we had never done it before, somehow it seemed complicated. I studied the website trying to make sure I understood how the whole thing worked, but it still seemed a bit confusing. That’s why I’m writing this blog post. Just in case there’s someone else out there like me who finds all the information a bit daunting!
1. Catch the vision and involve your kids if possible. I really wanted this to be something we were all excited about doing together. I had already watched some of the videos sharing testimonies of children who had received shoeboxes and how it had changed their lives. And I cried through all of them! So, first we talked to our children about the idea and told them what we were up to. They thought it was a great idea! I highly suggest watching the videos. They’re really amazing. If you’re like me, they’ll probably make you cry. 🙂
2. Go shopping! We had so much fun with this. After dinner on Friday night, we all went shopping with one of the lists of suggested items. Here’s a picture from our shopping trip on Friday night at 11:00 pm. Yes, we did stay out a bit late. I think the checkout guy thought we were crazy. First we hit the dollar store, and then we went to Walmart.
If you know that you’re going to be participating in this program next year, you can spend the whole year picking up things here and there inexpensively. We have found so many items at our local discount grocery store for a huge discount (our store regularly has hair items, school supplies, combs, and small toys for a great price).
3. Get some shoeboxes. You can order cute boxes directly from the OCC website, but we didn’t have time for that, so we just got these plastic shoe boxes our dollar store had. The nice thing about the plastic boxes is that they can be reused for so many things.
4. Fill your boxes. I spent quite a bit of time studying the various lists of suggested items. You can find some suggestions on the OCC website, and I also found this one and this one very helpful. The website also has a list of items that are not allowed, so be sure to check that out.
I loved this idea found on Pinterest. If you include a water bottle, you can also fill the bottle with gifts! So, the water bottle is a useful item in itself, and then you can pack even more in it! I looked specifically for bottles that didn’t have a straw. I know we’re always losing those straws at our house, so I wanted one that didn’t require one of those. These were at the dollar store, and just what I was looking for.
Lots of recipients said socks were much-needed items…
School supplies are also useful and often allow the child to attend school since they have to provide their own supplies…
We also included toothbrushes, toothpaste, washcloths, soap, band-aids, and lip balm…
Our girls had fun picking out hair items and simple bracelets for the girls.
Our dollar store (I think it was a Family Dollar) had these cute nail clippers, and they were very inexpensive.
We picked out a variety of small toys. It was so fun shopping for these!
For the older boy that our oldest son was packing a box for, we got this tape measure. Small tools and tool sets are also great to put in a box.
After watching this video, I knew we had to include some lovable little stuffed animals…
And a sweet, soft baby doll for the 2-4 year old girl box…
We also picked out some candy…
5. Make it a party! On Sunday afternoon, we all sat down to watch several of the Operation Christmas Child videos together (and, yes, I cried again). It really brought home to the children what an impact this simple project could have on the lives of others. (Here is the main one we watched.) After we watched the videos, every one of our children was so excited to be able to do this!
We lit candles and put on Christmas music to listen to while we packed our boxes. It was a happy family night spent together.
You can see in the photo below that the water bottle is full of hair items and candy and toothpaste:
I saw this idea on Pinterest, too. We filled the boys’ water bottles with candy and marbles!
6. Include a personal note and photo: After filling the boxes, each child filled out these “Let’s Be Friends” forms to include. We also included a photo of each child with their letters. Our kids really seemed to enjoy this part.
7. Be sure to label your box. Tape a label to the top of each box (I found some labels here), being sure to mark the correct age the contents are intended for (if you make a shipping donation online, you won’t really need this label since you’ll receive another one to print off with the tracking information):
8. Make a $7 donation per box to help cover shipping expenses. Go to the OCC website and make a donation of $7 per box to cover the shipping, and you can also get a tracking number for your boxes to see where they end up!
9. Take your boxes to the nearest drop-off location. Find your nearest location here. Shoebox Collection Week is November 16-23, 2015.
10. Pray! Pray for the children who will receive these boxes, and also for all those involved with this ministry.
Helpful Links:
- Operation Christmas Child Website
- OCC How to Pack a Shoebox
- Operation Christmas Child TV Special
- Operation Christmas Child pdf instructions and labels.
- 101 Operation Christmas Child Shoebox Ideas
We love Operation Christmas Child! We've been able to do it for several years, this year included. It is always so much fun to shop for gifts! I like to look on clearance racks well in advance, though I don't usually think far enough ahead to collect all year. 🙂 It's a great ministry!
That's awesome that you've been doing this for several years, Meredith! I wish we had started sooner. Shopping for the gifts was a lot of fun, and we look forward to participating again next year! 🙂
We have a similar shoe box appeal here in Scotland from a charity called Blythswood Care, but using cardboard shoeboxes. I think your plastic box idea is great, giving the recipient opportunity to reuse the box, as you say. Thank you for the ideas 🙂
I'm so glad to hear there are other shoe box ministries around the world. There are so many needs. Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment, Gwen!
We get a big group together every year and do this project. It's always a wonderful time. Glad you're getting involved too. I loved all the ideas – especially the filled water bottles!
Victoria
That's so neat that you do this as a group, Victoria—I think it would be so fun to do with a group! I'm thinking about trying to organize something like that next year. I'd also like to make some crafts to include in the boxes. So many possibilities!