A store is opening up in a Manitoba church that will impact children around the globe. 

Each year Landmark Christian Fellowship becomes a store to make kids' dreams from around the globe come true.

Karlee Peters helps out at the store every year. It's something that began by her mom filling shoeboxes for Operation Christmas Child (OCC) 25 years ago. 

"Her aunt passed away and her dream was everybody would make more shoe boxes . . . it started with my mom just asking people if they were interested in giving a little bit of money to make shoe boxes. So she'd have a little bit of money in this pocket from this person, and a little bit in this pocket and she couldn't keep track of all the stuff."

In 2017 we went to check out the store ourselves.

Peters mom eventually ended up buying a few items that a small group of people at her church could select from. "It just grew into her buying a bunch of stuff. Now it's growing into, you know, taking over the entire church building."

Brittany Plett had the opportunity to travel with OCC in 2017 to distribute boxes to children in Senegal. She says seeing firsthand the joy the gifts bring to children put into perspective how important that the shoeboxes are; for many kids, this is the only gift they might ever receive.

"To see these little kids, they don't care what size their box is or what's inside the box," Plett says, "they're just excited they get a box."

Open for business

The OCC shoebox store is a one-stop shop for everything you might want or need to put in the boxes. You don't need to bring anything, except your money.

The store officially opens on Tuesday, October 16 at 3:30 p.m.

It will be open from October 16 - November 17, on Tuesdays from 3:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. and Saturdays from 10:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. 

For more information, you can call Lori at 204.355.4272