Christmas is arriving early in Austin, as Crane Community Chapel prepares to serve as a collection point for Operation Christmas Child. Soon, with the help of local volunteers, the site will be brimming with festively wrapped shoe boxes full of gifts.

Through Operation Christmas Child, the world’s largest Christmas project, Austin residents are helping send shoe box gifts this year to more than 8 million children in 100 countries suffering from natural disaster, war, terrorism, disease, famine and poverty. From Austin, the shoe box gifts will be sorted and sent using whatever means necessary—sea containers, trucks, trains, airplanes, boats, camels, even dog sleds—to reach suffering children around the world.

Operation Christmas Child uses tracking technology that allows donors to “follow your box” to the destination country where it will be hand-delivered to a child in need. To register shoe box gifts and find out what country they are delivered to, use the EZ Give donation form found at www.samaritanspurse.org.

LOCAL COLLECTION SITES:

Crane Community Chapel

1111 9th Street NE

Mon: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Tues: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Wed: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Thurs: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Fri: 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Sat: 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Sun: 3 p.m. – 5 p.m. Mon: Not Collecting

Last year, Crane Community Chapel contributed 837 shoe boxes to the Operation Christmas Child effort. This year, organizers hope to collect over 890 gift-filled shoe boxes from families, kids, churches, schools and civic organizations in the area.

Since 1993, Operation Christmas Child, a project of international Christian relief and evangelism organization Samaritan’s Purse, headed by Franklin Graham, has delivered more than 77 million gift-filled shoe boxes to needy children in some 130 countries.