Diane Calvert, Operation Christmas Child year-round volunteer.
It’s Amazing What God Can Do With Your Time
Year-round volunteers are critical to the global, life-changing work of Operation Christmas Child.
Diane Calvert, administrative support volunteer at the West Coast Regional Office, does paperwork, filing, and data entry for Operation Christmas Child. She said “I do anything from A to Z” to support the staff.
Retired, Diane spends an average of two days a week volunteering with the Samaritan’s Purse project, but three to four days a week in November and December during shoebox processing season. This grandmother spent her career working in accounting and payroll offices and is delighted to transfer some of her skills to Kingdom ministry. “God uses what you have,” Diane said.
Diane Calvert stays busy volunteering at the West Coast Regional Office.
She enjoys interaction with her Operation Christmas Child colleagues daily and said, “Filling a box for one child does not just reach a child, it reaches a village or a community or a family that is in desperate need and shows them the love of Jesus. It makes such a dent in a hardcore life. It can mean the difference between life and death.”
To those considering volunteering with Operation Christmas Child, Diane said, “Pray about it because you want to know it’s where God wants you. When you feel it’s right, plunge in to everything you can because every little bit counts.”
“God uses what you have” Diane Calvert ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORTAnd don’t let time constraints concern you. Diane recommends you volunteer even it is just a few hours every other week. She said, “It’s amazing what God can do with your time even if it's putting stamps on postcards.”
Diane added, “I can’t wait to get to heaven to see all the children and their families that this project has impacted because I know it’s going to be millions.”
<!-- sub-head or second headline below God Uses People to Accomplish His PurposesA former mentor of Jill’s, Winnie Tuckness, serves as a regional area coordinator overseeing three Operation Christmas Child area teams. A few years ago, as Winnie drove US Highway 60 from Springfield to Nashville, Tennessee, she noticed First Baptist Church in Mountain View, Missouri, and thought it would be a good place for a shoebox drop-off location. When she noticed Matt Cobb was the pastor, she wondered if this could be Jill’s husband. She hadn’t had contact with the couple for 10 years.
Jill shows her enthusiasm for Operation Christmas Child.
Calling the church, she discovered it was in fact the same Matt and Jill Cobb whom she'd known years ago. This led to a reunion with the couple, and Winnie asked Jill if she would be interested in volunteering with Operation Christmas Child. She served in logistics first, and in 2016 became the area coordinator for the Springfield, Missouri Area Team.
During her interview for that position, Jill was reminded of a vision she’d had 10 years earlier of 1 billion people being saved during her lifetime. She shed tears of joy when she realized that, through Operation Christmas Child, she could have a small part in this becoming a reality.
“Jill is a gifted leader with such a passion and spiritual maturity,” Winnie said. “It’s exciting to see how God is using her.”
Jill quickly added, “I’m thankful God chooses to use us. It’s not that we’re amazing—through His grace and mercy He uses us.”
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