HARRISONBURG, Va. (ROCKTOWN NOW) – Local families are preparing for the school year with back-to-school sales and adding items to their lists for children in need worldwide.

Shoebox packers are using this time to purchase gifts and essential items to fill Operation Christmas Child boxes. Children in over 100 countries will benefit from these gift-filled shoeboxes and the hope of Jesus.

Many children around the world cannot afford school supplies. Coloring pencils, crayons and markers are a luxury. Olesea Makarets, a shoebox recipient from Moldova, shared them with her siblings. They used the markers until they were completely worn out, then dipped in water to extend their use.

When Makarets received an Operation Christmas Child shoebox, she remembers what stood out to her most.

“I couldn’t take my eyes off a pack of colorful markers. My siblings and I shared the markers we had but now I had received a pack of my very own,” Makarets said.

This simple gift deeply impacted Makarets’ life.

“Receiving a shoebox gift made me realize that Jesus, the powerful man in the Bible, is actually real,” she added.

Packing school supplies in shoebox gifts can transform a child’s life and point them toward greater hope.

For more information, call 410-772-7360 or visit samaritanspurse.org/occ. National Collection Week is Nov. 18 – 25. Participants can donate $10 per shoebox gift online through “Follow Your Box” and receive a tracking label. Those who prefer can shop at samaritanspurse.org/buildonline to select gifts matched to a child’s age and gender, and finish packing the virtual shoebox by adding a photo and personal note of encouragement.