Operation Christmas Child, a project of international Christian relief organization Samaritan’s Purse, delivers gift-filled shoeboxes to millions of children in need each year.
For years, Waynesboro families have packed shoebox gifts for boys and girls around the world. One of the gifts reached Alex Nsengimana in Rwanda when he was a young boy. Nsengimana visited Waynesboro yesterday to share how the simple gift had a life-changing impact for him.
Nsengimana told his story to local groups and churches. He encouraged residents as they kick off the upcoming collection season to fill more shoeboxes with fun toys, school supplies and personal care items—contributing to the global goal of reaching 12 million children in Jesus’ Name.
Growing up in midst of an unstable Rwandan government, Nsengimana experienced first-hand the travesties of his nation’s genocide. At the height of tribal unrest, the genocide claimed the lives of his caregivers. Fleeing for his life, Nsengimana escaped gunmen and eventually ended up in an orphanage that was his home for the next several years.
Nsengimana received a shoebox from Operation Christmas Child one year after arriving at the orphanage and remembers being so excited to have a gift to call his own. The shoebox gift sowed seeds of hope and love that he desperately needed. He realized that God had a specific plan for his life.
Nsengimana now serves with Operation Christmas Child paying forward the hope and love he received through a shoebox gift.
During Operation Christmas Child’s National Collection Week November 18 to 25, 2024, Waynesboro residents can bring gift-filled shoeboxes to multiple drop-off locations in the area to be announced in late October 2024.
For more information, call 410-772-7360 or visit samaritanspurse.org/occ. Participants can donate $10 per shoebox gift online through “Follow Your Box” and receive a tracking label to discover its destination. Individuals who prefer the convenience of online shopping can browse samaritanspurse.org/buildonline to select gifts matched to a child’s specific age and gender, then finish packing the virtual shoebox by adding a photo and personal note of encouragement.
Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan’s Purse, seeks to demonstrate God’s love in a tangible way to children in need around the world and, together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 220 million gift-filled shoeboxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories.
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Rebecca Barnabi
