Box of Joy challenged Catholics to intentionally set aside time and resources to help those who are less fortunate this Christmas season and reject the secular, materialistic culture by packing a box of small gifts for children in several poor nations. Box of Joy, a project of Cross Catholic Outreach, is pleased to announce its goals for 2019 have been exceeded. It is now focusing its efforts on gathering the packed boxes at local drop-off centers so they can be shipped off to the ministry’s centralized clearing center and prepared for international departure.

“So far this year, 103,851 boxes have been pledged to children who would otherwise receive nothing for Christmas, an increase of 24 percent over last year’s numbers; we are thankful to the thousands of families who have signed up and made an effort to help these children,” said Jim Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach. “The joy that will be delivered through these boxes is priceless, and we are deeply grateful to the individuals and families who have made Box of Joy a part of their Advent and Christmas celebrations. When they deliver those packed gifts to our drop-off centers this week, the overseas journey of those boxes will begin.”

Drop-off centers are spread throughout the country and can be located through the Box of Joy website. Pledged boxes need to be packed and delivered to these drop-off centers now during Box of Joy Week (Nov. 2-10) so they can be sorted and sent by the Box of Joy volunteer team in Miami, Florida.

Abby Johnson, Box of Joy Ambassador and founder of And Then There Were None, is spearheading the effort at her parish in Texas, where more than 300 boxes are being packed for children.

“My family packs several boxes of joy a year and my kids easily grasp the concept of selfless giving through this program, which I’m so grateful for, especially in the midst of an overwhelming materialistic culture during Christmas,” said Johnson. “It’s important for my children to find ways to show the love of Jesus to others, which Box of Joy helps them to understand.”

Boxes of Joy will be collected through Cross Catholic Outreach and delivered to children in Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Guatemala. If a family misses the Nov. 10 drop-off deadline, they can either send their packed box to the sorting facility in Miami or Sponsor-A-Box online, where a packed box of their choice will be delivered to a child on their behalf.

To learn more on how to engage students, parishioners or group members in reaching impoverished children through Box of Joy, please visit the website.

To learn more, visit CrossCatholic.org/BoxofJoy.