Christmas Day is still almost four months away, but for those who help collect shoe boxes filled with gifts and needed items for less fortunate children in need around the world, for some, it is a year-round effort.

The growing popular Operation Christmas Child got its official kick-off Sunday night, August 30 at the local project’s collection point, the Albany First Baptist Church, with special singing, speakers and presentations.

Operation Christmas Child, a Samaritan’s Purse Christian ministry headed by Rev. Franklin Graham, son of the late Rev. Billy Graham, that caters to needy children all around the world, is a project that is now in its eighth year in Clinton County.

Vickie Hughes, Samaritan’s Purse/OCC Church Relations Coordinator for the seven-county Lake Cumberland Area, said the kick-off events are a means of bringing awareness about the project, leading up to the primary shoebox collection week which is always the third Thursday in November.

“Many people get a much earlier start in filling the shoe boxes, and I even started in January, Hughes said.

The kick-offs held to start the primary focus of the drive is a means of getting new ideas and giving information about the project, distribution trips and numbers of lives the program touched the previous year.

There are a total of 126 counties that receive shoebox items and they are generally packed in four counties, the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Germany.

Last year, the United States alone supplied almost eight million boxes, while the worldwide total was 10.4 million and the three-state (Kentucky, Tennessee and Arkansas) area provided almost 700,000 shoeboxes.

Persons who fill and donate shoeboxes are asked to donate $7 per box to help offset the cost of shipping, as the boxes go to far off countries by many means, including air, ships and trains, or whatever means it takes to get the boxes to areas which are deemed in most need.

Once the boxes are collected locally, they are taken to Somerset and from there, via semi-trailer trucks, to one of eight nationwide relay centers, either Boone or Charlotte, North Carolina for the boxes collected in Kentucky and the Lake Cumberland area.

Prior to final shipment, any inappropriate items (for example, food items that may spoil during shipment) are removed then shipped from one of the national centers.

Hughes noted that receiving countries have to fill out applications and the boxes are “put in the hands of those most in need.” She added the program was designed so kids receive only one shoebox in a lifetime, so more total children can be served.

Although there is no exact way of knowing exactly where all of the shoeboxes that are filled locally go, boxes can be tracked somewhat with the use of the bar codes stamped on the boxes.

Over the past years in Clinton County, the program has grown year after year, with more and more boxes being filled and more and more churches of all denominations, as well as groups and individuals participating in the project.

Kathy Conner, who coordinates the local Operation Christmas Child collections, said that in 2014, some 21 churches took part and a record number of 1,564 boxes were filled–almost double the previous year and almost non-comparable to the only 30 boxes filled during the first year of OCC participation.

In the Lake Cumberland area, 15,000 shoeboxes were donated.

This year, during the kick-off event, a lofty goal of 2,000 boxes was set.

During the kick-off event, it was noted the primary goal of Operation Christmas Child was to present the Christian message around the world, and it was noted during a presentation by Conner’s daughter, Kara, that last calendar year, over 988,000 children who received shoeboxes, that contains a Christian booklet inside, became Christians.

Music during the kick-off included songs by Andrea Parson and her husband, who works with the OCC in nearby Cumberland County; the Albany First Baptist Church Youth Ensemble under the director of Dr. Carol Peddicord; Ginger (Pierce) Colovos and Darla (Pierce) Day, the latter two the daughters of Jack and the late Pat Pierce, who was a long-time supporter of Operation Christmas Child.

Day, a well-known singer all across the area, received a standing ovation following her performance of “How Great Thou Art.”

Several churches were represented at the kick-off Sunday, including a young lady from Fairland Baptist Church who donated $207 from her piggy bank to assist in paying for mailing the shoeboxes.

Participant information, shoeboxes and other items were available for those who attended the kick-off, which was a high number considering other church related activities that were taking place across the county the same night.

Just a few of the countries that shoeboxes reached last year wereColumbia, Barbados, Grenada, Georgia (in the east European block of countries known as the former USSR), and in African counties such as the Sudan, Mali, Ethiopia, Niger and some island nations in the Indian Ocean.

Although the items are shipped about a month prior to Christmas on the calendar, some countries may receive shipments within three or so weeks, while others may take a few months.

There were several stores told about children who received boxes that had “particular” items stand out to them, and one video presentation showed a now adult woman, who received a shoebox as a child that contained a stuffed puppy, which she still carries today–and she says because of the note left in the box that said the sender was praying for her, eventually led her to Christ.

The project benefits children from ages two to 14 and shoebox items can contain such things as toys, stuffed animals, pencils, crayons, notebooks, hygiene items such as toothpaste, bar soap (preferably Ivory), combs, shoes (such as sandals), other items of clothing, wash cloths, hats, hair bands, t-shirts, sunglasses and more.

Persons donating to Operation Christmas Child also have the opportunity to send a photo of themselves or their family and a personal note with the address and possibly be able to correspond with the child who receives the package.

During last year’s collection week at Albany First Baptist, about 50 volunteers helped band together and load the items onto trucks, using around 100 man hours of volunteer work.

Conner was well-pleased with the record-setting collection last year, as the goal for 2014 had been 1,200 boxes, but said she would like to see more groups and civic organizations get involved this year, in addition to more churches.

Records of all collection boxes are kept and all collections have to be accounted for through Samaritan’s Purse.

Last year, ABF Trucking Company volunteered to use drivers and trucks to haul the items from Kentucky to the primary distribution centers.

In 2014, Conner gave the following information that just about sums up the Operation Christmas Child project:

“Something as ordinary as a shoebox can accomplish the eternal when it is packed with toys, school supplies, hygiene items and God’s love. Powered by prayers, it can help lead children and families to faith in Christ, inspire pastors, plant and grow churches, and encourage disciples in some of the most unreached places in the world.

“It all starts when people decided to bless a child overseas through Operation Christmas Child, a Samaritan’s Purse project designed to deliver good news and great joy to boys and girls around the world.

“Individuals and families decide whether they will pack a shoebox for a boy or girl and then look for gifts appropriate for a specific age range. Prayerful shoppers search for items to delight a child; a toy car or a jump rope, a slinky or a doll. They look for practical things like pencils and paper, and necessary items such as toothbrushes or toothpaste.

“Whether toys, school supplies, or hygiene items, the giver seeks to pack their shoebox with as much fun and blessing as it will hold

“Before closing the lid, the giver can include a note for the recipient, often complete with a photograph. The person who packed the gift then pauses to ask God to deliver the shoebox to just the right child–the child for whom the things inside would be especially meaningful or even be an answer to a prayer.

“After being taken to a local drop-off site, the shoeboxes are then delivered to regional processing centers where volunteers prepare them for their trip overseas.

“Hundreds of thousands of miles later, the boxes clear customs, entering the care of Samaritan’s Purse ministry partners which plans distribution events at churches and other locations.

“These distributions often begin with music or puppets and include a presentation of the gospel that a child can understand. Then the big moment comes. Each child receives a shoebox of joy after a countdown and they all open their gifts at the same time. Squeals of delight and sounds of joy fill the meeting area.”

What begins in the heart of someone who cares can change eternity for a child and a family. The process happens millions of times over. Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child has delivered more than 114 million shoeboxes in over 150 counties.

For more information on the local Operation Christmas Child program, contact Conner, or regionally, Hughes at 502-931-6926 or for more information about Samaritan’s Purse, call 1-800-353-5949 or visit www.samaritanspurse.org or samaritanspurse.org/occ.