COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Christmas is still more than a month away, and while it may seem like it's too early to be thinking about tinsel and holly, local nonprofits and charities have been in the holiday spirit for months now, collecting items to give to the less-fortunate this season.
Operation Christmas Child, the world's largest Christmas project, is hoping to send gifts this year to more than eight million children in 100 countries suffering from war, disease, famine, poverty and natural disasters.
In Colorado Springs, the goal is to collect more than 25,000 gift-filled shoe boxes for kids of all ages. There are 13 collection sites in the area. To find a location near you, click here and enter your zip code in the box.
Volunteers said just one box can make a big difference in the life of a child.
"It means so much to have a gift of their own, often if they have never received one it tells them that they are important, and that someone who has never met them a world away cared enough to pack a box just for them," volunteer Amanda Koldenhoven said. "It can change a life 'cause it shows them they have a future, and they are important."
Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan's Purse.
Items needed for the shoe boxes include small toys, school supplies and hygiene products.
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