Romania

Samaritan’s Purse partner in Romania, Alina, gives the lowdown on shoeboxes arriving in her country.

Across the country, Shoe Zone has been recycling thousands of shoeboxes by handing them out to customers for Operation Christmas Child.

In Newry, Northern Ireland, the local shopping centre is in for a treat this month as a giant shoebox, complete with giant gifts, is on display. The oversized items are generating plenty of excitement as early Christmas shoppers are finding themselves getting involved with wrapping and packing their own shoeboxes.

The second part of our stay in Romania was further north in Transylvannia in a town called Cluj Napoca. Here the stark contrasts were between those with money and employment and the many without. The shoe boxes here were being distributed by a Christian charity that carries out social work across the country - Ecce Homo. We heard how unemployment is a really big problem - if you are working medical contributions are taken out