Norfolk beats Christmas box appeal record
 Churches, schools and individuals from across Norfolk have sent an incredible 14,500 Christmas boxes to needy children in Serbia in time for the festive season.
Operation Christmas Child is an annual project run by the Christian international relief charity Samaritan’s Purse. Ordinary shoe boxes are packed with small toys, school supplies, sweets and other gifts for young children who would otherwise probably receive no Christmas present at all.
Once collected, the boxes from the Norwich area are sorted and packed ready to be transported to the city’s twin town in Serbia, Novi Sad. Organisers were delighted that there were nearly 2,000 more boxes than last year.
Operation Christmas Child Area Co-ordinator Shirley Barber said, "We were amazed at the amount of boxes that came in and we wondered at one point if we were going to get through them all but we did! Some days 22 volunteers were in sorting and packing. The camaraderie between us all was wonderful, so much so that we're all meeting up again in the new year!
"The people of Norfolk have been so generous as they always are, but with the much talked about credit crunch we thought that there might be a drop in numbers but there were more than last year! We praised God for his goodness as we watched the lorries drive away with all those shoeboxes.
"Now we think of all those little children who will receive our boxes, we'll never know them but God knows who they are and will surely bless them as He will you for your giving."
www.operationchristmaschild.org.uk | 