JAN SWOOPE
Their shopping carts give them away. The plastic shoebox-sized containers, tiny toys, toothbrushes, school supplies and small, stuffed animals are sure signs of an Operation Christmas Child shopper. Golden Triangle stores have been filled with them.
As the Nov. 23 deadline for turning in boxes nears, churches, civic groups and individuals are out in force to fill their last containers destined for distribution to children worldwide by Samaritan’s Purse, Operation Christmas Child’s parent organization headed by Franklin Graham.
“Last year, almost eight million boxes were collected internationally; 124,533 of those in Mississippi,” Nelda Brown told members of Soroptimist International of Columbus Tuesday at the Columbus Country Club. Brown is coordinator of the Columbus Collection Center, which serves as a collection hub for relay centers in Starkville, West Point, Aberdeen, Louisville and other cities in North Mississippi and West Alabama.
“At the Columbus center last year, we took in 14,707 boxes,” said Brown. “That represented an increase of 18.5 percent from 2007. But our goal this year is 16,000 boxes.”
Read complete article at Commercial Dispatch.
Recent comments