Tallulah Falls Middle School students stand with filled shoeboxes, ready for distribution to Operation Christmas Child. (Brian Boyd/Tallulah Falls School)
Tallulah Falls School students contributed a record number of shoebox gifts to Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of the Christian relief organization Samaritan’s Purse.
TFS middle school students representing the four “houses” at last count had filled more than 112 shoeboxes packed with toys, school and hygiene items. TFS upper school students, led by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, added more than 100 shoeboxes to the total. The National Art Honor Society was also a significant contributor to the effort. The boxes were delivered to a Samaritan’s Purse distribution center before Thanksgiving break and will ultimately be shipped to children in need around the globe.
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Cyndy Campbell, a physical education teacher at the TFS middle school, has led the school’s support of the project for years.
“Operation Christmas Child perfectly complements our Tallulah 12 character program,” Campbell said. “It allows our students to give back to those less fortunate. We tell our students to be a blessing to others and you will receive a blessing in return. Our students answered the call by filling their boxes and praying over them as they make their way all over the world.”
Since it began in 1993, over 135 million children in 150 countries have received an Operation Christmas Child gift box. More than 500,000 volunteers worldwide, with more than 100,000 of those in the United States, are involved in collecting, shipping, and distributing shoebox gifts.
