Trish Postma from Second Christian Reformed Church in Brampton, Ontario, was one of 100 North American teens selected to deliver gift boxes for Operation Christmas Child.
Postma traveled to Belize, where she saw great poverty but was struck by the friendliness of the people she encountered. She found it eye-opening to see how grateful children were for ordinary items like toothpaste and small toys. “I’ll never forget one girl. When she opened her shoe box she almost started crying because she had a knapsack in her box,” she said. “I think of how much I get at home and how much I take things for granted.”
Operation Christmas Child is an initiative of Samaritan’s Purse, a Christian aid organization led by Rev. Franklin Graham. The boxes, which contain school supplies, hygiene items, small toys, books, and clothing, are distributed to children living in countries that have been ravaged by war, famine, poverty, disease, or disaster.
