Donations are still being accepted for Operation Christmas Child's Shoebox Campaign.

Volunteers were treated to lunch at the Mall in Portage la Prairie before getting to work loading all of the shoeboxes into a semi-trailer. Portage and Area Coordinator Eileen Warthe says yesterday was a busy day.

"This was an awesome day because we get shoeboxes coming in from not only Portage but also the surrounding areas, especially from a lot of the churches they bring their boxes in. It's also a day we get to recognize all our volunteers, so we had a huge packing party with a chili lunch and desert. After that, they all got together to pack up the shoe boxes into cartons."

She says we're all starting to think about the shoeboxes far too late in the year.

"When school supplies come out in August, that's the time to start thinking about shoeboxes because that's when you can get crayons for 25 cents, a pack of pencils for 10 cents, notebooks for 25-50 cents, and for many this is their first gift. What a way to express love upon them, but also another way as a gospel opportunity for them to learn about Jesus' love as well."

Warthe had some exciting news she shared during their lunch.

"I just found out this past week that I will get to do something that I've dreamed about since I was a little girl. I'm going to Senegal, Africa in July to hand out shoeboxes, so I'm really excited about that. I'll be posting something online so that people who want to help can find ways to be a part of this."

She adds you can still get a shoebox into the Greyhound station in town, or pack one online at your leisure.