Thousands of families and individuals in the Okanagan have discovered that there's no better way to get into the Christmas spirit than to pick up a red and green shoe box in early November and fill it for a child they will never see. Many get so excited by the exercise that they pick up many boxes and take them to school or work, their hope and love brimming over.

For Henry and Tobie Wiebe of Kelowna, regional coordinators for Operation Christmas Child in the Central Okanagan, their Christmas begins in June, when they send in their order for boxes and literature. "It's a pure project," said Tobie, who's been involved for eight or nine years, "because it's just to bless a child. It doesn't matter who and where they are. I love it."

The project has grown by leaps and bounds since its humble beginnings in 1990 when a couple in Wales took to heart a broadcast they had seen about orphanages in Rumania to the point where in 2005 723,091 boxes were sent from Canada of over 7 million worldwide sent to over 90 countries. Wilf Haak, coordinator in the North Okanagan, attributes this to the fact that "it's such a simple thing."

A handout explains what to put into the box, making it foolproof while allowing room for creativity, and pick-up and drop-off locations are as easy as the local Safeway. Each community has its own volunteers and developing traditions. Mike Buffie, an insurance adjuster in Vernon, has helped to collect the boxes from companies for a few years. He decided this year to help raise awareness by putting up posters in the dollar stores and Wall Mart and speaking to teachers and their classes. "It was wonderful to watch their faces light up when they realized they could make a difference," he said of the elementary students he spoke to. He said that some churches buy all the toys, school supplies, hygiene supplies and clothes throughout the year and hold a community event in November where people come, pay for boxes and fill them together. In Calgary, he has heard that emergency response units pick up the boxes from the schools with their lights flashing. "In Kelowna one lady has been taking supplies into a seniors residence to pack the boxes," said Tobie Wiebe. "This year she wasn't going to do it, but they wouldn't let her stop."

From the collection depot in the local community the boxes go to one of three central locations in Canada. There they are all checked for appropriate content and fullness, while never destroying the integrity of the box as it was packed. Wiebes are a part of that weeklong process each year and wouldn't miss it for the world. From there the boxes are shipped to the area that is the most cost-efficient - our boxes go to Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Venezuela. Volunteer teams in those countries identify areas of need where the boxes will go and arrange local transport, whether it be boat, plane, camel or cart.

The Wiebes and Haak have both had the honour of helping with distribution in Mexico. Said Tobie, "It's a life-changing experience. Some of the children would have been happy if the box was the gift. They open them and close them again, overwhelmed. Then they handle the things and show them to their mothers. If I knelt in front they would offer me a candy. The parents are crying. The children would say, 'Why would someone in Canada send me a gift?' or 'How did they find me?'" She related how one girl was able to go to school after she received school supplies in her box. She has also had the satisfaction this year of having a young lady come in to drop off a box who had received one herself ten years ago in Rumania.

Samaritan's Purse has overseen Operation Christmas Child since 1993. They have collected numerous examples over the years of lives and even communities changed when children who feel alone, hungry, cold or scared receive evidence that someone cares.

See www.samaritanspurse.ca for further information.

December 06-Lynn Dewing