OSWEGO, NY – Southwest Oswego United Methodist Church at 7721 State Route 104 in Southwest Oswego will host an Operation Christmas Child information program as part of its 11 a.m. worship service on Oct. 23.
Anyone interested in learning about the outreach mission that fills shoe box gifts with small toys, hygiene items, and school supplies for children in need in more than 100 countries is welcome.
Operation Christmas Child is a ministry of the international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse (www.samaritanspurse.org), headed by Dr. Billy Graham’s son, Franklin Graham.
As part of her Oct. 23 presentation at the Southwest Oswego United Methodist Church, Operation Christmas Child volunteer coordinator Patty Jennings will share photos of her trips to help distribute the shoe box gifts to children in Africa and Central and South America.
Southwest Oswego United Methodist Church Pastor Elise Skiles said, “During our Vacation Bible School this summer the children focused on Give the Gift Away. They filled shoe boxes with items they selected and placed under a Christmas tree to be sent to children around the world. This inter-generational theme is our focus this fall as we continue our mission outreach. Our goal is to do more boxes this year than in past years.”
Southwest Oswego United Methodist Church serves as an OCC Relay Center at which boxes can be left during designated collection week hours; the boxes are then transported to North Carolina to the OCC processing center for preparation to travel overseas.
The national shoe box collection week for Operation Christmas Child (OCC) is always the third week in November.
Jennings is speaking to churches and groups throughout the New York North Central Area that includes Oswego, Oneida, Herkimer, Lewis, and Jefferson counties. The area set a new record for giving in 2010 with more than 10,000 boxes packed.
For more information, contact Jennings at 315-232-2690 or the church at 315-343-0096.
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