Samaritan’s Purse has announced they exceeded their donation goal of 10 million gift-filled shoeboxes in 2014.

Operation Christmas Child collects boxes from the United States and 12 other Western nations.  The boxes are filled with small, age-appropriate gifts for children around the world who would not have a Christmas without the donations.

The organization said that 10.4 million shoeboxes came in for 2014, 8 million from the United States.  The boxes then are distributed in over 100 nations around the world.

“The 10 million shoeboxes are being distributed worldwide right now. We are sending these gifts to local churches in more than 110 countries around the globe this year,” Operation Christmas Child’s domestic director Randy Riddle told The Christian Post. “That was our worldwide goal and our global goal: collecting shoebox gifts in 13 countries and sending them around the world. We are very thankful to surpass our global 10 million goal.”

In addition to the gifts, each box contains information about Christ.

“This is many times the first time that these children have ever received a gift of any kind,” Riddle explained. “Working with our local church leaders, this platform allows us to share the Gospel with children who have never heard about Jesus before, or never had an experience like this before to hear a clear presentation of the Gospel.

“We have Gospel literature that is handed out alongside every shoebox gift and there is typically a verbal proclamation of Gospel with the shoebox gift,” Riddle continued. “It teaches these children that there is someone here on this Earth that loves them and cares about them and has not forgotten them and that there is a God in Heaven who loves them as well.”