12,000 ADRA Shoeboxes Head to Burkina Faso

23 November 2012 Watford, United Kingdom [Victor Hulbert, BUC News] Mac couldn’t be happier. “Most days I’m loading my truck to make rich people richer. Today, I’m transporting happiness,” he beamed while carefully swinging a forty-foot container up from the ADRA compound on Stanborough Park, Watford, onto the back of his lorry.

A skilled operative, he was one of the lorry drivers commissioned to transport the two ADRA containers to the Port of Felixstowe. That will start their six week journey by ship to Burkina Faso
where 12,000 shoeboxes, WakaWaka solar powered lights, and 250 relief boxes from Aquabox should arrive, ready for distribution, on Boxing Day. What a joyful surprise that will be for thousands of children.

ADRA-UK CEO, Bert Smit, was visibly excited as he watched the containers being loaded on Wednesday, 21 November. “So many people, and especially schoolchildren, have made this happen,” he stated, noting that there were 4,000 more shoeboxes than in the 2011 appeal. “People are so generous, even when feeling the pinch themselves.”

That generosity has been seen across the country. In Middlesbrough 167 boxes were collected at the Adventist church while a further 202 were donated by children at a local primary school. Judy Hamilton-Johansson states, “This is the sixth year the school has taken part in our annual shoebox appeal. The kids are so keen to help others and get really excited about making the boxes, after watching the ADRA DVD and realizing how little the children of Africa have, many used their own pocket money to buy gifts.”

Judy noted that it really helped getting an article published in her local newspaper. She says, “I had people knocking at my door with boxes.”

Leamington Spa Mission found members of all ages bringing their creative skills to the fore on Sabbath afternoon, 10 November, sorting, wrapping and packing as well as providing transportation donations. Nigel Clark notes that it was a fun community activity, with the energy levels “maintained with the provision of hot mince pies and mulled juice.”

In Central London, Claudia Passer rejoiced, “Praise God, we managed to make 104 complete boxes. However, they got so excited and want to go for 200 next year.”

They are representative of hundreds of churches and volunteers who have made this year’s appeal the most successful to date. A young child from Manchester stated, “We saw your video and we wanted to do shoeboxes to make more little kids happy.” Not put off by the frost last Sunday morning, another volunteer stated, “When I saw the number of shoeboxes being delivered it was only then I realised how big the shoebox appeal has become.”

“The response from our members and friends has been phenomenal,” states appeal coordinator, Godwin Benjamin. His thanks go not just to the donors, “but also the volunteers who packed boxes at the collection points and those who helped to unload the trucks and pack the two containers. All your efforts were greatly appreciated.”

Volunteers will also play a part in the distribution next January. Five volunteers have been selected from the applications received in response to an announcement on the ADRA-UK website. The volunteers travel at their own cost but will be hosted while helping with the distribution. Expect to see Mac’s smile multiplied a hundredfold as these volunteers see the joy a simple shoebox can bring.

Visit the BUC Picture gallery for photos and a video of the shoebox send-off. Follow ADRA-UK on Facebook or on the web. [tedNEWS]

tedNEWS Staff: Miroslav Pujic, director; Deana Stojkovic, editor
119 St Peter’s Street, St Albans, Herts, AL1 3EY, England
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: www.ted-adventist.org

tedNEWS is an information bulletin issued by the communication department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Trans-European Division.
You are free to re-print any portion of the bulletin without need for special permission. However, we kindly request that you identify tedNEWS whenever you publish these materials.