Operation Christmas Child volunteers will be making crafts to place in shoebox gifts from 1 to 3 p.m. Sunday at Messiah Lutheran Church, 2000 Main.

Rachel Albin, area coordinator, said participants do not need to have special skills, and youth are welcome to participate.

“If you want to take some of the items you make for your own shoeboxes or for your church’s shoeboxes, that’s absolutely fine,” Albin said. She added that if participants have crafts they are working on for their own shoeboxes, they are welcome to bring them along.

“This will be a fun time when we can gather together as an interdenominational group and work on projects and share ideas.”

Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse, an international relief agency headquartered in Boone, N.C., and led by the Rev. Franklin Graham. Every Christmas thousands of individuals prepare shoeboxes filled with small toys, school supplies and hygiene items, which are then delivered to needy children around the world.

Children receiving shoeboxes also receive a booklet titled “The Greatest Gift,” which tells the children about Jesus and how much he loves them. For many of the children, the shoebox is the first gift they have ever received.

Albin said in 2018, individuals in Ellis County donated 2,615 shoeboxes. This year’s shoebox collection week is Nov. 18 to 25.

Donations for craft supplies are always accepted and appreciated, Albin said. More information is available by contacting her at (785) 639-1325 or at [email protected].

— Submitted