Back to school shopping is in full force right now, but many families are looking beyond their own checklist and buying supplies for kids in need in other parts of the world.
It's for an organization called Operation Christmas Child but the supplies are sent out all year long. Volunteers shop for supplies, and then pack them in shoe boxes. School materials, toys, and toiletries are all items that are needed.
Operation Christmas Child sends these items overseas to children facing poverty, disease, and the fallout from natural disasters. They say for many, these simple items will help them go to school for the first time.
Operation Christmas Child volunteer Edith Fisher said, "These items may seem very ordinary to us, but to some child that never had the opportunity to go to school before, these items are very important and special to them. They may have the opportunity to go to school for the very first time when they see pencils in their school box."
Fisher has been a volunteer with the organization for 15 years. She says this is the perfect time to start shopping for the shoe boxes, because there are so many great back to school sales right now.
