In keeping with our motto, the village church with a global mission, Christ the King Lutheran Church children will be filling and wrapping shoeboxes to give to seafarers who visit the Port of Houston during the holiday season. The gifts will be distributed by the Seafarers’ Ministry, which comprises Episcopal, Catholic, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Lutheran chaplains.
We encourage families to fill a shoebox with items such as:
combs, soap, shaving cream, disposable razors, toothbrushes and toothpaste, pads, pens, pencils, puzzles, envelopes, needles and thread, deodorant, socks, shoe laces, calendars, bottle openers, nail clippers, aspirin, band-aids, key chains, small photo albums, Texas souvenirs, disposable or one-use cameras, or something fun. (These are items we take for granted but they are appreciated tremendously by the seafarers).
Please bring your filled shoebox to church. The children will be wrapping the gifts at the Festival Fair on November 13.
A seafarer from Honduras commented to a chaplain visiting his ship docked in Pasadena: “You are the only ones who remembered us.” He was referring to the Christmas gifts the chaplain had brought to his ship last year. “Oh no,” the chaplain assured him, “All the people who sent you those gifts remember you, and they all pray for you!” The man smiled and said, “Thank you.” The Seafarers Ministry hopes to “gift” over 12,000 seafarers this season.