Cardiff Blues have once again this season supported Operation Christmas Child (OCC) - with Blues Under-16s getting right behind the campaign.
Since 1990, Operation Christmas Child – an initiative of the relief and development agency Samaritan’s Purse – has been giving underprivileged children around the world gift-filled shoeboxes wrapped and packed by children and adults in the UK.
It is a campaign that thousands of individuals right across the UK get involved with every year and is now the UK’s largest children’s Christmas appeal. Since its inception 113 million shoe boxes have been distributed.
This year Cardiff Blues Under-16s South joined the campaign in Cowbridge to lend their support.
Martin Lewis, Chaplain at Cardiff Blues, said: “It has been a privilege to be able to introduce Operation Christmas Child to the Blues four years ago.
“Each year one of the younger age grade teams becomes responsible to donate a shoebox each, go to one of the packing warehouses to help sift and pack the shoeboxes carefully into bigger packing boxes and then load a lorry with thousands of shoeboxes bound for places like Belarus.
“This year the Under-16s South squad packed up a container for Zambia with 8,000 boxes inside. So far Blues youngsters and parents have helped send out nearly 60,000 boxes.
“Each box makes such a difference to the child that receives it and the boys can be rightly proud of their efforts alongside many others.”