In 1993, Samaritan’s Purse first delivered Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts to children in Bosnia. Since then, 188 million children in over 150 countries have received this simple gift that brings hope even to the remote corners of our world. Friday Harbor has generously supported shoebox gifts in the past and continues to be a link in this worldwide chain. Many thanks are extended to the generous team at Kings Marine for supplying shoeboxes to wrap. The Presbyterian Church hosts the collection site with their Mary Martha Circle filling boxes and organizing cartons for transportation off-island. Friday Harbor Freight picks up the large cartons and transports them to His Place in Burlington for their further destination. Some boxes even go through five ports to reach the children. This year, we had help bringing the empty cartons to the island and many shopped for items to add to the boxes when off-island trips became limited for many of us. All have generously contributed and we are sincerely grateful. A sincere thank you to all! We sent 132 shoeboxes that will bring joy, hope, and love to impoverished children in our world. Merry Christmas!

Mary Ray and

Margaret Ann Wiese

San Juan Island