Operation Christmas Child provides a practical way for Canadians to share the joy of Christmas and the hope of Jesus Christ with children living in countries that have been ravaged by war, famine, extreme poverty, disease, or natural disaster. Anyone can participate in this simple project by packing a shoe box with personal gifts to be sent to a child overseas.

The principles of Operation Christmas Child can be reflected by three simple, yet powerful, words - joy, faith, and compassion.

JOY: To bring joy and hope to children around the world, regardless of their race, religion, or gender, by giving them an unconditional gift to remind them they are loved and not forgotten.
FAITH: To share the even greater gift of God's love - reflected in His Son Jesus Christ, the Christmas Child - through acts of love and kindness and when possible, through written and spoken word.
COMPASSION: To foster compassion in Canadian children by expanding their world-view and teaching them it truly is greater to give than to receive ("kids helping kids").

Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the following local businesses
for their contributions towards this project.

Mark Davidson Trucking
Why Design
Projected Images
London Public Library

Statistics for 2005

Volunteers in 11 countries packed
nearly 7.4 million shoeboxes.

These were distributed to needy children
in over 95 countries worldwide.

723,091 shoebox gifts were collected in
Canada and distributed in the following countries:
Argentina, Belize, Bolivia, Costa Rica
El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea
Haiti, Ivory Coast, Mexico, Nicaragua
Paraguay, St. Vincent, Senegal, Togo
Trinidad & Tobago, and Uruguay