Nov 3, 2014 4 min read

The Women of St. Benedict the Abbot Church in Peters Township were so moved following a talk by the director of an outreach program in West Virginia, the ladies decided to begin filling shoeboxes with toiletries, mittens, small gifts and other items for those stricken by poverty or natural disasters. The boxes are delivered to Appalachian Outreach Inc. near Moundsville for distribution in the state.

The talk by director and co-founder of Appalachian Outreach, Rose Hart, was 11 years ago, and during the first year the ladies packed 157 shoeboxes. Since then a total of more than 4,800 shoeboxes have been sent to the outreach center. This season, more than 500 boxes were filled and wrapped, said Jackie Buck. She has been an integral part of the group, known as the Shoe Box Santas Project, since its inception. She’s even solicited the help of her husband, Bob, who sorts and packs the wrapped packages in donated banana boxes, something he has done for the past decade.

After 11 years, the process is a smooth-running event held every Wednesday in October. On Oct. 29, the group was finishing preparing the final boxes packed this holiday season.

“We have to deliver them by the beginning of November so the charity can distribute them to the various groups, like the senior citizens,” Jackie Buck said. “We collect things all year and then assemble and wrap.” Appalachian Outreach distributes the shoeboxes to other organizations such as St. Vincent de Paul, various churches and Goodwill, all in Appalachia.

Those who volunteer for the project held in the sanctuary of the former church adjacent to the current church are mainly retired women, with the exception of Bob Buck and Bruce Diges. Along with his wife, Diges volunteers and has done so for the last seven years.

“It gives me a good feeling to help other people,” Diges, of Peters Township, said. He also drives one of the rental vans needed to transport the wrapped boxes to the outreach center in Glen Dale, W. Va.

No one at St. Benedict’s expects to meet one of the recipients of the boxes, but that doesn’t stop them from giving of their time.

“It’s a gift of love,” said Peters Township resident and parish member Donna Frizzel. “When there is so much need in this country, you have to give back.”

For several years, Helen Orzechowski of Bethel Park has been known as the “tissue lady.” Her job is to carefully fold and line the empty shoeboxes with tissue paper. She is adamant about only one sheet of tissue in each box, unless the box is extra large.

“This passes my time,” Orzechowski, a member of St. Thomas More Catholic Church, said. “It’s gets me out of the house to help out.”

Throughout the year, the woman and other church members collect small items for inclusion in the shoeboxes, Jackie Buck said. Donations also appear, including dental floss, toothbrushes and toothpaste from local dentists. Empty shoeboxes are donated by parishioners and local shoe stores. Even the rolls and rolls of holiday wrapping paper are donated.

“Ladies look for bargains all year for shoeboxes,” Jackie Buck said. “They find gloves, socks, pens, pencils, cards, note pads. Some of them even shop while on vacation, always looking for a good buy.”

The wrapped boxes are marked for men or women, boys or girls.

“This year, our seventh and eighth grade students had a service project where they wrapped boxes for teen boys or teen girls with items they know that age group would like,” Jackie Buck said.

One of the volunteers who’s been involved since the beginning is Cel Satler of Peters Township.

“Things just show up,” she said of the donations as she walked around the long tables collecting items to be packed. “I was here at noon (Oct. 28) and by (Oct. 29) morning, toothpaste and toothbrushes showed up. There are a lot of little elves.”

Jackie Buck said the group knows the gifts will be appreciated. She spoke of one woman who told Appalachian Outreach she had never received a wrapped gift. Instead of opening the package, she just kept it on a shelf so she could look at it whenever she wanted.