Operation Christmas Child: A Holiday Tradition

As football season comes to an end, everyone begins anxiously looking ahead to the holidays. For some, this means red Starbucks cups and shamelessly watching Elf on repeat, but for one Ole Miss student, the holiday season this year means so much more. Ashley Sandel, a junior at Ole Miss, has decided to spend countless hours spreading the word of Operation Christmas Child to the Oxford community.

Operation Christmas Child is a non-profit organization that gives children from third world countries Christmas gifts that they have never received before. After collecting donations of shoeboxes filled with Christmas gifts, they then distribute these gifts to children in need. Sandel, who first got involved with Operation Christmas Child through her hometown church in Natchez, Miss., has been collecting shoeboxes since around the age of six. This past summer, the idea struck her that she should bring the cause to the Ole Miss campus.

“It’s such an easy service project that any college student can participate in because it doesn’t consume much time or money,” Sandel said.

Ashley Sandel (right) and her friend Sierra Little pack shoeboxes with gifts for Operation Christmas Child.

Upon deciding to get the Ole Miss campus involved, Sandel went to her sorority’s president to ask if she could secure their involvement. She then organized a pack-a-thon at the sorority house in which the girls can all pack shoeboxes together while watching Christmas movies and remembering what the holidays are truly about.

Darby Raybourn, a senior participating in the pack-a-thon, is making a shoebox for Operation Christmas Child for the first time this year.

“It is such a rewarding feeling getting to be a Santa Clause to kids that have nothing,” Raybourn said. “It’s amazing to know that my small contribution will brighten someone’s Christmas.”

Last year alone, 10.4 million children spanning from the ages of 2-14 years old received shoeboxes through Operation Christmas Child. This year, Sandel hopes they can raise the number even higher. Though her efforts may not reach the millions, she believes that every shoebox will bring joy to these children. Next year she hopes to have Operation Christmas Child become an official Ole Miss organization, so that every student can easily get involved with the cause.

Sandel said, “We have so many blessings in our lives that we take for granted, so going to the dollar store and buying a few toys and other items for these children shouldn’t be a burden on us at all.”

For more information regarding Operation Christmas Child, visit their website here. Shoebox donations in Oxford can be dropped off at the First Baptist Church from Nov. 16 – 23.

Kate Donlevy is a senior broadcast journalism major at the Meek School of Journalism and New Media. She can be reached at mkdonlev@go.olemiss.edu.

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