STANDISH, ME – For the second-consecutive year, members of the Saint Joseph’s College Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) participated in Operation Christmas Child, a global Christmas gift exchange project operated by Samaritan's Purse, last week.
The Saint Joseph’s SAAC, which features at least one representative from each of the Monks’ athletic programs, came together late last week to fill shoeboxes with toys and other items that will be shipped to less fortunate children, ages 2-14, in multiple countries around the world.
The student-athletes gift-wrapped the boxes, which were filled with matchbox cars, coloring books, crayons, socks, toothbrushes and toothpaste, hats and mittens and various other items - all of which donated by SAAC members and athletic teams.
With the help of Committee Advisor Tiffany Miller-Gagnon, the SJC SAAC members put together nine boxes – four for boys and five for girls. Their contribution was added to the shipment made by Royal Ridge Church of God in Scarborough, Maine, which – including the nine made by the Monks - sent 39 boxes in total.
Operation Christmas Child, a ministry of Samaritan's Purse, provides an opportunity for people of all ages to be involved in simple, hands-on mission projects. According to the Samaritan's Purse web site, the mission of Operation Christmas Child is to demonstrate God's love in a tangible way to needy children around the world, and together with the local church worldwide, to share the Good News of Jesus Christ.
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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 430-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.