NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Anabel Rosario representing Operation Christmas Child visited Hutchinson earlier this month. She was a child recipient and now works for Samaritan's Purse spreading the message of how important this can be for the families that receive it.
"I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic," Rosario said. "These shoeboxes represent something like God's love in a tangible way. When I grew up in the Dominican Republic, my family didn't have extra money for gifts, for Christmas gifts or things like that. Like even the house that I was born, it was made out of this material stronger than cardboard, so my mom used to put plastic packets everywhere so the water won't get into our house, but there was something special that happened to me when I received this gift."
Annabelle grew up in a pastor's home. She saw the shoebox in a different way than some might.
"This shoebox, believe it or not, it was an answer to a prayer because I prayed that I wanted to have a Christmas gift, and that's how I got my shoebox. I prayed and God touched this beautiful family, Brittany, Austin, and Brayden. I still have some items from my shoebox."
One of those items is the letter the family sent to her and she also kept the pictures they sent in the shoebox.
"After I received my shoebox, a few years after, there was a huge car accident and that ended the life of my mom, my dad, and my oldest sister," Rosario said. "When I was going through that process, God reminded me that when I was a little girl, he answered a prayer through the shoebox, and now that I'm an adult, this is a reminder of God's faithfulness."
Anyone can pack a shoebox. Individuals, families, churches and groups fill empty shoeboxes with school supplies, hygiene items and fun toys, such as dolls or soccer balls.
During National Collection Week (Nov. 18–25, 2024), Samaritan’s Purse will collect the gift-filled shoeboxes at over 4,700 drop-off locations in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.
Learn how to pack a shoebox, view gift suggestions, get your Follow Your Box label and find the nearest drop-off location at samaritanspurse.org/occ.