On Tuesday, Nov. 15, Lee University students, staff, and faculty gathered to pack shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child (OCC), a service opportunity provided through Samaritan’s Purse.

Hosted by First-Year Programs at Lee, more than 1,500 people participated by packing boxes at the event and/or contributing to the project throughout collection week. Participants included the entire freshman class, Gateway instructors, peer leaders, and other clubs and organizations across campus. Additionally, OCC was the sponsored project of this year’s Parade of Favorites, an annual student talent showcase at Lee.

OCC’s mission is to fill as many shoebox-sized boxes as possible with Christmas gifts to be distributed to children in need around the world. This year, 3,050 boxes were filled by the Lee community.

Lee’s Office of Student Development and Student Leadership Council have been in charge of the on-campus packing efforts since 1998, providing 30,641 shoeboxes to date, and look forward to this annual event as a way to serve others.
During the event, guest speaker Alex Nsengimana, representing Samaritan’s Purse, shared his story of receiving a shoebox as a child in Rwanda. He also spoke in Lee’s chapel service dedicated to OCC the following Thursday morning.

Samaritan’s Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization providing spiritual and physical aid to people in need around the world. Since 1970, Samaritan’s Purse has helped meet needs of people who are victims of war, poverty, natural disasters, disease, and famine with the purpose of sharing God’s love.