Published: November 22, 2008 12:09 pm         

Donations requested for Operation Christmas Child

“The Power of a Simple Gift” is the theme for Operation Christmas Child. National Collection Week for the program is Nov. 17 through the 24.

First Baptist Church is collecting the gifts in this area. The church Collection Center is open every day from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. through Monday Nov. 24. The gifts are sent to children in third-world countries.

Operation Christmas Child is a program of Samaritan’s Purse, an international ministry. The Reverend Franklin Graham is President of the ministry.

Gift items to be included in the box are socks, underwear, tooth paste, a toothbrush and a toy. You can fill the box with a variety of gifts.

You can choose a gift for a boy or a girl. Then choose an age from two to four; five to nine or ten to fourteen.

The gift should be wrapped in a shoe box or a small plastic container.

To help cover shipping and handling of the gift include a $7 donation.

Place a rubber band around each closed shoe box and drop it off at the nearest Collection Center.

The Collection Center at First Baptist Church is located at 308 E. Broadway St. The Collection Center is located at the “Bus Barn,” where the old Greyhound Bus Station was located. Look for the Roadway Express Trailer.

This is the third year the First Baptist Church has collected the gifts in our area and they invite the public to participate.

If you want to donate a gift, but miss the local collection date, call 1-800-353-5949 to find out when and how you can get the gift delivered. Area churches that are participating include First Baptist Church in Collinsville, First Baptist Church in Decatur and First Christian Church in Ardmore.

For more information go to the website www.samaritanspurse.org.