Over 25,000 Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes packed in Manitoba last year are now on their way to children in developing countries. 

King noted the number of people who packed shoeboxes online at packabox.ca about tripled over 2019.

Mostly assembled at Christmas time, the packages are delivered throughout the first half of the following year.

Frank King, News Media Relations Manager for Samaritan's Purse Canada, has been on a few distribution trips himself and says it's neat seeing the range of reactions from the children who receive a gift.

"Some of them they're excited, they're opening it up and showing their friends. Sometimes they're trading stuff. Other times kids will just open up the box, they'll look through it a little bit and then they'll close the lid and they won't open it again until they get home to show it to their parents and their siblings," he explained. "What a blessing it has been for me to actually see the result of the generosity of the people across Manitoba and Canada."

Meantime, Canadians packed a few less shoeboxes in 2020 than in previous years, something King says those at Samaritan's Purse fully expected considering the challenges brought on by COVID-19 throughout the year.

Churches in parts of the country had to close due to public health restrictions which resulted in a loss of drop-off locations, a number of people didn't feel safe heading out to purchase items for a shoebox and in some cases, King says other partner businesses were closed or operating in a reduced capacity resulting in a loss of staff and/or income.

"So we're fully understanding that this was not going to be the best of all years for Operation Christmas Child, but again given what 2020 and this year are like, we're grateful that we were still able to do this," he added. "Children who have never received a gift are still going to get them, maybe not as many but they'll still get gifts like this and they'll still find out that people they've never met in a country they've maybe never even heard of, packed a shoebox just for them."

However, King noted the number of people who packed shoeboxes online at packabox.ca about tripled over 2019.

"So for that we're just giving a big cheer because there's a good news story in the middle of a challenging year."

Worldwide, over 9 million shoeboxes were packed in 2020. In Manitoba, residents contributed 25,491 to that total with 5,258 coming from Winkler and Morden.