GFA World and Believers Eastern Church Share the True Meaning of Christmas with Children During the Pandemic

    STONEY CREEK, ON, February 24, 2021 /24-7PressRelease/ -- 2020 was a difficult year. COVID-19 restrictions meant that many of the regular events of our lives had to be rearranged or maybe even cancelled altogether. Christmas was an especially challenging time for families in locked down countries around the world.

Many parents struggled to be able to put food on the table and their children did not know when they would go back to school or experience any sense of normal life.

Amid the uncertainty of last year, GFA World, together with one of their mission partners, found a way to share the joy of Christmas with thousands of needy children, thanks to the simple gift of a shoebox.

GFA World, located at 245 King Street East in Stoney Creek, is also the home a parish of Believers Eastern Church (BEC), an evangelical, indigenous church movement around the world GFA serves alongside, as an international mission organization.

St. Cyprian Believer's Eastern Church was excited to once again host a Shoebox Collection Centre during Operation Christmas Child (OCC) National Collection Week, November 16-23.

Operation Christmas Child, a project of Samaritan's Purse is a hands-on way for Canadians to bless struggling children in the developing world by filling shoeboxes with toys, hygiene items, school supplies, and other items.

To keep everyone safe during Collection Week, all centres, including BEC, operated with contactless shoebox drop-off only. OCC also offered the online Build a Shoebox Program for those who are unable to leave their homes.

However, the COVID-19 restrictions did not slow the number of shoebox donations that came in. A total of 900 shoeboxes were collected from the Stoney Creek area, the largest number BEC has received since they started as a collection centre in 2018.

Stoney Creek was not the only community whose Christmas generosity was not hindered by the COVID virus. Over 370,000 shoeboxes were packed in Canada in 2020, with around 295,400 of those being traditional boxes rather then packed online.

Canadian's shoebox gifts travelled around the globe to children in countries such as El Salvador, Costca Rica, Sierra Leone, and Gambia.

GFA World and Believers Eastern Church were honoured to join OCC in sharing hope with children in need during the pandemic. They are looking forward to taking part in National Collection week again this year and maybe even topping their shoebox numbers from 2020.

GFA World, www.gfa.ca is a leading faith-based mission agency, helping national workers bring vital assistance and spiritual hope to millions, especially to those who have yet to hear about the love of God. In GFA World's latest yearly report, this included more than 70,000 sponsored children, free medical camps conducted in more than 1,200 villages and remote communities, over 4,800 clean water wells drilled, over 12,000 water filters installed, income-generating Christmas gifts for more than 260,000 needy families, and spiritual teaching available in 110 languages in 14 nations through radio ministry. For all the latest news, visit our Press Room at https://press.gfa.org/news.

PHOTO CUTLINE: GFA World Collects Christmas Shoeboxes for Children: Canadian-based mission agency GFA World along with Believers Eastern Church hosted an Operation Christmas Child Collection Centre at their building in Stoney Creek.

# # #