We owe a great deal of thanks to the many people who have helped with this year’s Operation Christmas Child campaign.
By the time we were done counting, we found we had 648 shoeboxes to give to children in developing countries — children who would not ordinarily receive anything for Christmas.
That translates into nearly 650 readers who took the time to go shopping for a child, and bring the shoeboxes to our office.
The giving did not end there, however.
We had the help of the Waterloo Regional Police, when it came time to load the shoeboxes onto a bus, as well as the support of Kiwanis Transit, who generously transports the boxes to Operation Christmas Child’s warehouse in Cambridge.
That would have been enough generosity, but we received even more when the Kiwanis Transit bus experienced engine trouble, and we had to turn around, stopping at Martin’s Garage in St. Jacobs.
That led to having a bus pulled from service near Wellesley, and transferring the boxes to the second bus. Help from staff at Martin’s Garage made the transfer a relatively quick process, and we were on our way again.
The shoeboxes, of course, will also receive the generous support of volunteers who inspect each and every one before they are sent overseas, ensuring that every child receives appropriate gifts.
Then, when the boxes arrive at their final destination, more volunteers will distribute the gifts.
All in all, dozens of people are involved in each and every gift through Operation Christmas Child. To them, we owe our thanks.
Now, we turn our attention closer to home, to the annual Christmas Goodwill Program, which helps families in need by providing Christmas hampers.
These, too, rely on the generosity of hundreds of local residents, who buy, wrap and package the gifts for families who would otherwise have nothing to give to their children.
The hampers also rely on the generosity of the Elmira Kiwanis club, which runs an annual food drive in November, to collect food for the hampers that are given out.
Donations are being received at Woolwich Community Services from now until Dec. 9 (Friday), with hampers being assembled next week.
So while you are out shopping for your loved ones, take the time to remember those who cannot afford to give.
Your Christmas will be blessed for it.