Tag: shoe box gift

Packing Shoe Boxes for Operation Christmas Child – Boys 10 – 14

August 26, 2020gifts, , , , , , 1 Comment

Last year I learned that Operation Christmas Child receives the fewest number of boxes for boys 2-4 and 10-14. It’s got to be pretty upsetting for both the recipient and the distribution team to run out of boxes for a specific group. We’ve decided to focus our future efforts on the 10-14 year old boys category. That doesn’t mean we won’t ever pack for other groups, we just want to improve the collection stats for older boys. Here’s what we’re packing this year:

School Supplies: Composition book, pencils, double pencil sharpener, large eraser and full sized scissors. I like the scissors because they work for a lefty or righty and are practical for other uses in addition to school work. See the tiny fishing kit below.

Something to wear: 2 pairs of socks, 2 boxer briefs, a shirt and sunglasses.
In early August, Walmart marks down summer clothing and we were able to find sporty tees and nice button up shirts for $3 each. The performance fabric shirts are great because they are practical for any climate and take up less room in the box.

Hygiene Items: Washcloth, bar of soap, shower comb and toothbrush with cover. I like the shower combs because they are very sturdy and work for any hair type.

Fun Stuff: Building kits, sticky catch game and a tic-tac-toe game made by our sweet nieces. The game board is a drawstring eyeglasses bag from the Dollar Tree with the grid drawn on using a Sharpie marker. The game pieces are decorator’s pebbles. We include an extra pebble of each color in case one gets lost. The wordless instructions were found online and we printed them four to a page.

Practical Gifts: Bungee cord, drawstring backpack, cup, bowl and utility spork, the little box holds a tiny fishing kit.

The fishing kit contains one bobber, four hooks, two sinkers and approximately twenty-five feet of fishing line. We included a sketch showing how to assemble the line on a wooden stick.

Nest as much as possible. In the interest of not shipping air, we like to pack those nooks and crannies full.

Once I’ve figured out how everything fits into the box, I snap pictures of each layer for reference. This is especially helpful when I have breaks between packing the boxes.

Tuck a Christmas card, your picture and a note of encouragement into your shoe box. Let the child know that you love them, and are praying for them. Include your address or email if you like; sometimes the recipient or their parents will write to you!

So that’s what we’re sending to big guys this year. I hope this post is helpful for shopping and packing inspiration.

Happy shoe box packing!

Links to other posts about OCC:
https://arthurizedhome.com/tag/shoe-box-gift/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2019/09/27/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-what-fits-inside-the-box/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2020/08/19/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-boys-5-9/

This post is not sponsored. I only share charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Packing a Shoe Box for Operation Christmas Child – Boys 5 – 9

August 19, 2020gifts, , , , , 2 Comments

With school supplies on sale in the stores, it’s time to ramp up packing shoe boxes for Operation Christmas Child. Here’s a peek at what’s inside the boxes we’re packing for 5-9 year old boys.

School Supplies: Composition book, student scissors, double pencil sharpener, pencils, erasers and colored pencils
School supplies are key. In some areas, children can only attend school if they provide their own supplies; a price of admission too high for many.

Something new to wear: Shirt, shorts, two pairs of underwear and socks
For boys in this age category I buy size 8 pants and shirts. Bonus points for elastic waistbands.

Hygiene supplies: Washcloth, bar of soap, toothbrush with cover and a comb
Can you imagine having to share your toothbrush or washcloth with several other people? I can’t either. This is a reality for many children in orphanages.

Toys/Wow Item: Jump rope, block type building kit and mesh bag, water bottle and Young Simba. Because even nine year old boys need a stuffed friend for sharing all their secrets.

So that tiny blocks don’t fall out of the mesh bag opening, I removed the manufacturer’s plastic bag and placed the pieces in a quart sized zipper bag.

A note about packaging: Many of the shoe box destinations do not have the infrastructure to handle trash. The packaging we ship becomes a burden for the receiver. Having said that, I did leave the colored pencils in the box for storage when they’re not in use.

I like to roll and rubber band soft goods to fit them into the box. Those rubber bands could be useful to the recipient, or just ammo for an epic rubber band battle!

When packing multiple like boxes, I snap pictures of each layer of the first box so that each box is not a new puzzle. I placed the package of colored pencils flat in the bottom of the box, then began the first full layer above. Sharpened pencils are positioned away from clothing, to avoid unwanted markings during shipment!

In the interest of not shipping air, I rolled and stuffed the socks and one pair of underwear into the water bottle.

Last layer! Position the notebook along the upper edge of the box and gently bend it over as you snap the lid on. My husband says the box is not full until you have to “Sit on it, to get the lid on it!” LOL! Rubber bands hold the lid in place until the box is inspected and taped shut at the processing center.

Tuck a Christmas card, your picture and a note of encouragement into your shoe box. Let the child know that you love them, and are praying for them. Include your address or email if you like; sometimes the recipient or their parents will write to you!

So that’s what we’re sending to little guys this year. I hope this post is helpful to you for shopping and packing inspiration.

Happy shoe box packing!

Links to other posts about OCC:
https://arthurizedhome.com/tag/shoe-box-gift/
https://arthurizedhome.com/2019/09/27/packing-a-shoe-box-for-operation-christmas-child-what-fits-inside-the-box/

This post is not sponsored. I only endorse charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.

Packing a Shoe Box for Operation Christmas Child

August 30, 2019gifts, , , , , , , 7 Comments

Y’all, this is so fun! Operation Christmas Child shares the joy and promise of Christmas with children around the world, by distributing shoe boxes filled to the brim with gifts. For many of these children living in poverty, this is the first gift they receive. Some of these deliveries are made on camel back, loaded onto elephants, others strapped to motorcycles; but all are delivered with love.

In 2018, more than 10.6 million shoe boxes were collected for distribution to 112 countries and territories. That’s a whole lot of joy!

Boxes carried by oxen in Mongolia. (Oxen with boxen?! Ha ha!) Photo Credit: Samaritan’s Purse

With just twelve weeks to go until national collection week, here are some fun ideas for shoe box packing:

One Wow Item: Dolls, stuffed animals and deflated soccer balls (with a pump) are all great. Mickey and Minnie are our “wow” items this year; boys get Mickey, and girls get Minnie. We folded them over, and placed rubber bands around them to make them as small as possible. The indignity! I tried using hair ties, but the fabric is too slick and they slid right off. Oh, well. The kids can have a humdinger of a rubber band fight!

Other Fun Stuff: Marbles, jacks, jump ropes, Matchbox cars, beach balls, sticky catch games, water bottles, playing cards, stickers, coloring books, journals and Lego kits are all fun additions to shoe box gifts. See Shanika and Sherika’s story below to learn why they were thrilled to get a set of jacks in their shoe boxes.

School supplies: In many areas around the world, school supplies are the ticket to education. Can you imagine not attending school simply because you don’t have paper or a pencil? One lady on a distribution trip reported that teachers break pencils into several pieces, so that more students can have one.

Something to Wear: Walmart and Kohls had great end-of-summer sales on kid’s clothing. The boys get tees and shorts, and I found tees, capri pants and dresses for the girls. Shoes and flip-flops are useful and appreciated.

I sure hope that the boy who receives this outfit is a little spitfire. He’ll need a lot of personality to rock that monster tee!

We’ll KonMari the heck out of the clothing, and keep them folded during processing and shipment using rubber bands.

Personal Care Items: We’re packing for elementary age children this year, so a comb, washcloth, toothbrush with cover and a bar of soap will do the job. Just picture twelve children sharing a washcloth, or 25 children sharing a toothbrush. Such simple items can mean the world to a child in need.

Tuck a Christmas card, your picture and a note of encouragement into your shoe box. Let the child know that you love them, and are praying for them. Include your address if you like; sometimes the recipient or their parents will write to you!

Here are some helpful tips I’ve learned from the Shoebox Shoppers Facebook group:

  • You do not have to use OCC boxes, although they’re nice! Any shoe box will do. Standard sizes are best because they can pack more into a carton when they are a uniform size. However, odd/larger size boxes will not be rejected.
  • Remove all packaging material from the shoe box items. Most of the receiving countries do not have the resources to handle trash. The recipient will not think that your gift is used if it’s not in the manufacturer’s packaging.
  • Fill the box to the brim. Don’t ship air!
  • Boxes are inspected at 8 different processing centers around the U.S. The volunteers view each box as your unique gift to a child, and do not remove items unless they’re on the prohibited list. (Liquid, glass, seeds, war-related, etc.) They do not re-distribute gifts from one box to another. They will add to a box if needed, and keep small filler items on hand in case a box has extra room.
  • Track your box online, but know that some boxes go to sensitive countries and you might not learn the final destination of your gift. Be sure to include $9 per box to cover the costs of shipping and transportation.

No time to pack a shoebox? You can quickly build one online here:
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/buildonline/

Here are some stories from shoe box recipients.
Izabella’s Story:
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/shoebox-stories-izabella-and-a-snow-globe/
Shanika and Sherika’s Story:
https://www.samaritanspurse.org/operation-christmas-child/shoeboxstories-shanika-sherika-and-the-notebooks/
TRIGGER WARNING (Abuse/Sexual Assault) Boun’s story is difficult to hear, but so important:
https://video.samaritanspurse.org/boun-thornes-story-gifts-from-god/?fbclid=IwAR1-6fwko-4FOINBMsc4C94PRSIXCwngixknbyDvYAk9n6YvJxN_O_hl9PU

What a beautiful and simple way to bring the good news of Jesus to children around the world!

Helicopter delivery in Honduras. Photo credit: Samaritan’s Purse

This post is not sponsored. I only endorse charities that I personally support, and I hope you will consider supporting them too.

Copyright 2019-2020 © Arthurized Home – All Rights Reserved. This post is the original content of Arthurized Home. If you’re reading this on another site, it’s unArthurized.