Christian Kohler, a member of Waterville United Methodist Church, was busy Sunday filling decorated shoe boxes with gifts for a boy he doesn’t know.

“I also did this last year,” the 11-year old said. “This time I decided to pack a box for a boy between the ages of 10 to 12. I think I know what they would like.”

Dozens of volunteers of all ages took part in the church’s Operation Christmas Child ministry after church.

Run by Samaritan’s Purse, a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization, the program sends decorated shoe boxes filled with items to children all over the world. Local churches in more than 100 countries hand out the shoebox gifts at festive outreach events.

The Waterville UMC event has been run and organized by Anne Stevens for the last 29 years.

“We started col

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