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\u00a0\u00a0Operation Christmas Child provides an opportunity for people of all ages to be involved in a simple, hands-on project of Samaritan’s Purse that focuses on the true meaning of Christmas – Jesus Christ –\u00a0God’s greatest gift<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ivy Presbyterian Church begins distributing shoe boxes in September and collecting\u00a0them by mid November. Check our Calendar for firm dates.<\/p>\n
Operation Christmas Child was started in 1990 by Dave Cooke, a Welshman who felt moved to deliver gifts to Romanian orphans after seeing their living circumstances on television.\u00a0 In 1993, Operation Christmas Child grew and was adopted by Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian organization run by Franklin Graham.\u00a0<\/p>\n
To date, Operation Christmas Child has collected and distributed over\u00a094 million shoe box gifts worldwide.\u00a0 Each shoe box gift is filled with hygiene items, school supplies, toys, and candy, is given to children regardless of gender, race, religion, or age.\u00a0 When culturally appropriate, copies of a book entitled The Greatest Gift of All<\/em>, which has been translated into 130 different languages, are offered to children after the shoe box has already been distributed.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00a0\u00a0Operation Christmas Child provides an opportunity for people of all ages to be involved in a simple, hands-on project of Samaritan’s Purse that focuses on the true meaning of Christmas – Jesus Christ –\u00a0God’s greatest gift \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Ivy Presbyterian Church begins … Continue reading