With holiday supplies already covering the store shelves, Fountain Hills individuals, families, churches and groups are working to make Christmas a reality for needy kids around the world by filling shoeboxes with toys, school supplies, hygiene items and notes of encouragement.

Operation Christmas Child, the world’s largest Christmas project of its kind, is ramping up as Fountain Hills residents prepare to collect 400 gift-filled shoeboxes during national collection week (Nov. 18–25).

At a local collection site in the Fountain Hills area, anyone can drop off a gift-filled shoebox to send to a child overseas.

Then using whatever means necessary—trucks, trains, boats, bikes and even elephants—the shoebox gifts will be delivered to children worldwide.

For many children, the shoebox gift will be the first gift they have ever received.

The Fountain Hills collection site is located at Trinity Lutheran Church, 13770 N. Fountain Hills Blvd.

The operating hours for the site will be Monday, Nov 18, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.; Tuesday, Nov, 19, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Wednesday, Nov. 20, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.; Thursday, Nov. 21, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Friday, Nov. 22, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.; Saturday, Nov. 23, 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.; Sunday, Nov. 24, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, Nov. 25, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Though the shoebox gifts will often travel thousands of miles, Operation Christmas Child offers a way for participants to follow their box, by using the donation form found at samaritanspurse.org.

Donors will receive an email telling the country where their shoeboxes are delivered.

Operation Christmas Child has collected and delivered more than 100 million shoebox gifts to suffering children in more than 100 countries since 1993.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary, Operation Christmas Child hopes to collect another 9.8 million gift-filled shoeboxes in 2013.

Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan’s Purse, an international Christian relief and evangelism organization headed by Franklin Graham.

For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, call 303-745-9179 or visit samaritanspurse.org.