Throughout Aberdeenshire thousands of Christmas presents are being wrapped in time for..... November 18th!

"This is a BIG date on our calendar," explains Chris Thomson, Regional Manager of Operation Christmas Child, "because it is the final date by which the many gift-gilled shoeboxes donated from throughout Aberdeenshire can be handed in and still give us enough time to get them to the vulnerable children in several countries where the presents will bring much-needed joy this Christmas.

"Our warehouse in Kirkintilloch is handling shoeboxes coming in from communities across the area, including Aberdeen, Banchory, Buckie, Deeside, Elgin, Ellon, Forres, Fraserburgh, Inverurie, Lossiemouth, Peterhead, Stonehaven and Westhill but we do need them by November 18th so that our teams of volunteers can check the boxes prior to shipment. We need to be sure they comply with customs requirements and that the contents are suitable for the children to whom they are going. Then we pack the shoeboxes in large cartons, load them on to lorries and they set off on their various journeys.

"It is a huge task but well worth it. The children receiving them have difficult lives. They may be ill in hospital. A lot live in orphanages or street shelters, or they may be with their families but living in poverty. For many, the shoebox is the only present they will receive this Christmas. Some have received so little in life that they open their shoebox, look at the gifts and then hand it back, because they do not realise it is for them to keep. When they do, their faces are a joy to see.

"The shoeboxes are all distributed unconditionally, with nothing asked of the children or their family, for those who are still with their family. They are not required to do anything in order to receive a shoebox - they are all children in need and we are privileged to be able to bring them a little kindness, courtesy of the person who took the trouble to put the shoebox together.

Anyone wanting to make up a shoebox can go to our website http://www.operationchristmaschild.org.uk and find out what kind of gifts to put into it and, by entering their postcode, locate the nearest drop off point to take it to for us to collect. We do request a £2.50 contribution towards promotion, transport, processing and distribution. If anyone has any questions they can call our Helpline on 0870 011 2002."

ENDS

Editor's Notes:
1. Operation Christmas Child sends shoeboxes with gifts to children in the following countries: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia, Kosova, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Montenegro, Mozambique, Romania, Serbia, Swaziland and Ukraine. It is the biggest annual project run by Samaritan's Purse, the evangelical Christian humanitarian aid charity.

CONTACTS: Chris Thomson, Regional Manager, Operation Christmas Child
Tel: 07825 056 426
Alistair McLean or Kevin Dorrian of Acumen
Tel. no. 0131 661 7027