'Operation Christmas Child': 1 Girl Helps Give 10,000 Shoe Boxes Full of Gifts to Children in Need

A girl, who partnered with Operation Christmas Child and began a shoebox club, is celebrating the club’s 10,000th shoebox for children in need.

When she was eight years old, Evilyn Pinnow from Wisconsin formed a shoebox club that supplied items to children around the world, Fox News reports.

Pinnow and her club members had a modest goal to pack shoeboxes that were full of toys, school supplies, hygiene products, and a handwritten letter. 

"My wildest dream for the shoebox club was that we'd maybe pack 100 shoe boxes each year but look what God has done," the now 19-year-old college student said. "We're now celebrating the 10,000th shoe box packed by the shoebox club.

"It had very little to do with me and a lot more to do with God's blessing and the amazing church family that we have."

In 2012, Operation Christmas Child, a project of Franklin Graham's Samaritan's Purse relief organization, asked Pinnow to deliver the organizations 100 millionth shoebox to a girl in the Dominican Republic.

That same year, she made multiple appearances around the country to celebrate the milestone reached by the organization.

Evangelist Franklin Graham, president of Samaritan's Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, said he is thankful for people like Pinnow and her commitment to serving the less fortunate.

"I am so grateful for Evilyn," Graham said. "She is just one girl but she has now touched the lives of 10,000 children. Just look where people like Evilyn have taken Operation Christmas Child. They've taken these gifts of love to more than 165 countries around the world and I am so grateful for that." 

Pinnow was named the ambassador for Operation Christmas Child when she was 12-years-old.

Graham said he expects more than 11 million shoeboxes to be donated this year.

"I love seeing children receive shoebox gifts. There is so much excitement and joy. You can hear the kids giggling and shrieking," Graham said. "For many children, this is the first gift they've ever been given. It's precious to watch how God uses a gift to open the hearts of children."

National Collection Week is from Nov. 18-25. There is a $9 donation fee for shipping fees and ministry expenses.

"Every box is an opportunity to reach a child with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It's about telling children around the world and their families that God loves them. God hasn't forgotten them," he concluded.