Dothan Operation Christmas Child Kickoff Event Planned For September 27
By: Stephen Crews
Updated: September 19, 2012
WHO: Renan Perdomo will share how Operation Christmas Child changed his life as a young boy in Honduras. As the youngest boy of 10 children, Perdomo grew up in a small village near the Caribbean coast of Honduras. His father owned a small store in the front room of their house.
The family lived day-to-day on the little money it had, and buying simple things like school supplies was always a point of concern. Sometime later, Perdomo received a shoe box gift brimming with pencils, a notebook, crayons and scissors. When receiving the gift-filled shoe box, Renan remembers feeling shocked that people across the ocean would care enough to send him gifts. Now living in Mississippi with his wife Juanita, Perdomo packs shoe box gifts with his wife and their two daughters, and speaks at events and churches promoting the project that changed his life as a young boy.
WHAT: Dothan area kids, families and volunteers will come together with one common purpose--to host a celebration kicking off the expected 16,500 gift-filled shoe boxes collected by local residents for children overseas through Operation Christmas Child.
The Heritage Baptist Church collection center in Dothan is one of 3,200 locations where donors can drop off shoe boxes packed with toys, school supplies and necessity items during National Collection Week this November. This local collection point will serve as the shoe box gift's first stop on a journey around the world to a child in need.
After the shoe box gifts are collected Nov. 12th-19th they are sent to be processed and prepared for hand-delivery to children worldwide using whatever means necessary--sea containers, trucks, trains, airplanes, helicopters, boats, elephants and dog sleds.
WHEN: Thursday, Sept. 27th at 6:30 p.m.
WHERE: Heritage Baptist Church
1951 Westgate Pkwy
Dothan, AL 36303
