4,400 Christmas Shoeboxes were collected by the Blumenort EMC and Grunthal Bergthaler church shoebox stores this year.

Debbie de Klein, who coordinates the Operation Christmas Child shoebox collection in the area, says this beats last year’s total by about 400. “And that’s really encouraging,” she comments, “because it means that 400 more kids are able to get a shoebox and hear the gospel message.” De Klein is convinced that every shoebox made is intended for a specific child and is glad that the number of boxes made each year seem to be rising.

De Klein adds, “It is always fun meeting the people who are dropping off the boxes and hearing their stories of how they worked hard to get their boxes together. It’s just been a real blessing to connect with churches and people all around.”

After a truck came by this past Sunday to pick up the donations from the churches de Klein explains that they were taken to a central point in Winnipeg where they will soon be delivered to Calgary to be examined. Following their processing, each box will be shipped overseas over the next few months depending on their final destination.

If anyone in the area still wants to build a shoebox but forgot to do it in time, de Klein says they can always visit the Samaritan’s Purse website and put one together online.