Operation Christmas Child (OCC) is a project that has been run by the Samaritan’s Purse since 1993. The project is simple: packing shoeboxes with toys, hygiene products and school supplies for children in need. But the mission has a global impact. OCC has been a way to spread, joy, hope and the gospel to children all over the world from over 170 countries. Some children have never received a Christmas present in their life, but with OCC, they get that chance of happiness on Christmas Day, often leading them to also accept Christ into their lives after reading notes or materials from those who packed their boxes.
Normally you would see OCC promoted in churches where packing parties and organized box drop-offs happen on a large scale. However, junior digital media communications major Lauren Steed has taken the initiative to bring Operation Christmas Child to Union with her very own organized packing party.
Steed told me how she grew up doing OCC with her church and that her parents also turned it into an event done as a family. She shared memories of going to Walmart together, of going down the aisles to pick things for their shoeboxes and how her mom would tell her to pick out a toy she would like to get as a child. Steed’s family would then pack the boxes at home and pray over them together before taking them to the drop-off location. Doing this every Christmas grew Steed’s passion for the mission of OCC, inspiring her to do something similar once she entered college.
“And so, whenever I got to college, I’m like, ‘This would be something that I could do pretty easily on a college campus,’” Steed said. “And so, I just kind of decided to do it. And that’s kind of my process of how I came to do it. I just did it as a child a lot. And then I just want to share this with other people and have people gain this experience as well.”
In the weeks leading up to her packing party, Steed has promoted her event through posters and a table in the SUB hallway. Having already done this in her freshman and sophomore years, Steed hopes to see the event grow this year. The first year, 26 boxes were packed, and around 36 boxes were packed in the second year. This year, Steed’s goal is to pack 75 shoeboxes and aims to pack around 100 in her senior year.
“I’m also asking for donations,” Steed said. “Because as a college student, we don’t have a lot of money. And so far, I’m funding all of this out of pocket.”
Steed has a donation goal of $1,000, having already received $800 from Union student donations. Every bit helps Steed to order shoeboxes from Samaritan’s Purse and to purchase items to put inside.
Steed’s roommate Emma Coykendall, a junior public relations major, showed me a picture of a grinning Steed in their dorm standing next to a towering pile of packages filled with OCC boxes, toys, hygiene products, school supplies and other necessities. The stacked packages nearly reached the ceiling, giving Coykendall and Steed the idea to jokingly dress it as a person with blankets they had on hand.
“It’s cool to see late at night when we’re all in the dorm working on homework and she’s typing away and she has all these spreadsheets and stuff for Operation Christmas Child. She puts a lot of work into it,” Coykendall said.
Steed’s OCC packing party will take place on Nov. 5 at 4 p.m. in Harvey Hall. Steed hopes to see more people come and participate than in the past two years, excited at the thought of creating a fun time in the Union community with a project she loves. Those who attend will get to pack shoeboxes with the items that Steed bought and write notes of encouragement or Bible verses for children around the world.
“I think as a whole, I just love what their mission is,” Steed said. “That they not only want to help kids just in the practical everyday sense and give them Christmas gifts, but it’s also a great way to share the gospel without going out and knocking on doors. It’s like you have something to give them to show them the love of Jesus.”
