KAPA‘A — The misty rain and blustery winds blanketing the Crossroads Christian Fellowship Kaua‘i on the Kapa‘a bypass road might have slowed, but did not stop the traffic of shoebox-laden cars and trucks that delivered loads of Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes.
“Today is the final day of collection,” said Christina Ensman, one of the Operation Christmas Child team leaders, on Monday. “We’re shipping the 40-foot container to one of eight Operation Christmas Child processing centers.”
After surveying the closing times of the four collection sites on island — the Crossroads Christian Fellowship in Kapa‘a, the Calvary Chapel North Shore in Kilauea, the Calvary Chapel in Lihu‘e and the Waimea Baptist Church — she estimated that Kaua‘i contributed nearly 3,500 shoeboxes to this year’s program presented globally by Samaritan’s Purse.
The shoeboxes will be further broken down to include deliveries to the Philippines, the Ukraine, El Salvador, Uruguay, Madagascar and Mangolia to help their children have a pleasant holiday.
“Samaritan’s Purse is here, now,” said Christina who recently returned from a two-week stay on Maui where she worked with Samaritan’s Purse and neighborhood churches in relief from the wildfire that destroyed Lahaina town. “They’re here on Maui, and it’s amazing to see them working with the churches in providing relief for people impacted by the fires.”
Kaua‘i was the recipient of Samaritan Purse’s benevolence during the flooding in Hanalei caused by record rainfall when a small group of people, including then-mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr., watched the orange 747 plane laden with supples and relief people lumber up the taxiway at Lihu‘e Airport amid an overwhelming emotional sense of gratitude and hope.
“In 12 years, we’ve grown from a 20-foot container to now a 40-foot container,” said Mike Ensman, who was helping pack the collection. “And, with just hours remaining, the container is nearly full.”
Christina Ensman said for people wishing to pack shoeboxes, they can do so online. One of the online sites is www.crossroadskauai.org.
