Join us Saturday, July 23, for a morning of fun while packing shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Hosted at Andy/April Williams’ home, 7270 Westfall Rd, Amanda.

Stay for lunch. Bring your lawn chairs and a covered dish. Meat, drinks, and table service provided.

Help us set up starting at 9:30 am Friday, July 22. Lunch will be provided.

We are so excited that Alex Nsengimana will be joining us at our packing party! We’ll take a short break from packing as he shares his story and then stay and pack shoeboxes alongside Alex. You don’t want to miss this incredible young man!

Growing up in the midst of an unstable Rwandan government, Alex 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, Alex escaped gunmen and eventually ended up in an orphanage that was his home for several years. He 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. Alex now serves with Operation Christmas Child paying forward the hope and love he received through a shoebox gift. To find our more about how God protected and intervened in his life after surviving the Rwandan genocide, please join us for a special time of Alex telling his story of redemption and forgiveness.

The number of boxes we pack is important because each one represents a child who will hear the Good News! Grab a shoebox on your way out of church this morning, fill it and bring it back anytime. Monetary contributions are used to buy items for the packing parties.

Remember to pray for the children who’ve received our shoeboxes as they’re going through discipleship classes learning about Jesus.

Year-Round shopping for Operation Christmas Child shoe box gifts helps provide supplies for the church packing parties. It’s also a great way to collect items for your personal shoe box gifts.

Pick up a calendar of the suggested items for each month of the year. Leave donations in the boxes located in the church foyers. Financial donations should be placed in an offering envelope marked OCC gifts or OCC shipping. For more information, contact Michelle Williams, 740-215-7519.

We are very pleased to announce our annual Packing Party.

As with everything else, some adjustments had to be made to address COVID-19. We will be asking participants to sign up in advance for specific times so the room does not become overcrowded. Tables will be set up to allow for social distance. Sign up sheets are in the church foyers. Contact Michelle Williams with any questions, 740-215-7519.

Join us in a socially distanced setting to prepare items for shoe box gifts. Contact Michelle Williams for more information, 740-215-7519.

We will not be meeting for the remainder of 2020 with hope of being able to gather again next year. Meanwhile, projects you complete at home for shoe box gifts are welcome. Place them in the boxes in the church foyers.