Operation Christmas Child

Local Races Giving Thousands Of Unused T-Shirts To Children In Need

SANTA CRUZ — Operation Christmas Child is a local project that collects empty shoeboxes and fills them with hygiene items, toys, and school supplies to deliver to children in need around the world, often victims of war, disease, and poverty.

Two local community races, Wharf to Wharf and She is Beautiful, recently joined arms with the Santa Cruz project of Operation Christmas Child by donating more than 1,800 t-shirts that would have gone unused following the events. The youth and women’s sized shirts will now be used as clothing items for children who have little to call their own.

Wharf to Wharf is an annual race in July that draws thousands of runners from across America and around the globe to Santa Cruz for a six-mile race to Capitola-by-the-Sea. This year, on the day of the race, which drew more than 10,000 participants, race director Ken Thomas realized their cartons of more than 800 women’s shirts were all youth sized and couldn’t be used. Hearing about the Operation Christmas Child project, Thomas knew the shirts could be used for a great cause and benefit children in need.

Thomas shared the idea with Melissa McConville, the organizer of the all-women’s local race She is Beautiful, and it was decided to give 1,000 unused t-shirts following the Santa Cruz event to be used to fill shoeboxes this year.

Local project coordinator Linda Kay expressed her thankfulness for the generosity shown by the race organizers. “These children, many of whom have never received a gift before, learn they are loved through a simple little gift. It is overwhelming to know that these t-shirts that would have gone unused are going to have such a huge impact on children around the world.”

Operation Christmas Child thanks Wharf to Wharf and She is Beautiful for their generosity that will spread joy to children around the world this Christmas season. The t-shirts will pave the way for the Santa Cruz local project in their goal of collecting 5,500 shoebox gifts this year.

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For more information on how to participate in Operation Christmas Child, call (714) 432-7030 or visitsamaritanspurse.org/occ.