Franklin Graham joined Fox News’ annual Christmas tree lighting celebration in New York City on Friday night, delivering a message about faith, generosity and what he called "the first gift" of Christmas — God giving His Son, Jesus Christ.
The president and CEO of Samaritan’s Purse and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association also highlighted this season’s goal for Operation Christmas Child, which will send more than 13 million of its gift-filled shoeboxes to children in over 130 countries.
Graham appeared live on Fox Square alongside hosts and hundreds gathered for the network’s holiday kickoff, presenting one of the gift boxes packed by his 3-year-old granddaughter.
The box, filled with a Minnie Mouse stuffie, school supplies and a handwritten note she helped prepare with the help of her family, represented the kind of gift Samaritan’s Purse has distributed worldwide for nearly 30 years.
"This year we’ll have about 13 million of these boxes," Graham said. "Each one has about 30 gifts in it. And what we want to teach children is the importance of giving. God gave His Son, Jesus Christ — and we want the children of the world to understand the importance of receiving a gift, and for the children who pack them, the importance of learning how to give."
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Graham thanked Fox News employees, who packed more than 400 shoeboxes ahead of National Collection Week (Nov. 17–24).
"To have the help of Fox — packing boxes — it’s been wonderful," Graham said. "It’s a great partnership."
Hosts on stage encouraged viewers to participate by scanning the QR code displayed on-screen, which directed them to Samaritan’s Purse packing instructions.
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The segment came during the ceremony’s faith-themed portion, with Graham grounding the moment in the biblical foundation of Christmas.
"Christmas is about giving," he said. "God gave the first gift — His Son, Jesus Christ, who came to take our sins. At Christmas, we honor Jesus Christ and remember what He did for us."
Operation Christmas Child, run by Samaritan’s Purse, is in its National Collection Week through Monday. Nearly 5,000 drop-off locations are open nationwide for families and churches to deliver packed boxes containing toys, hygiene items and school supplies.
The project involves roughly 300,000 volunteers and reaches deep jungles, city slums, mountainside villages and more than 1,000 remote Pacific islands, according to Samaritan’s Purse. Shoeboxes collected in the U.S. are combined with gifts from around the world to reach children in difficult or isolated regions.
"At Samaritan’s Purse we have the opportunity to share the true meaning of Christmas with millions of children around the world through Operation Christmas Child," Graham told Fox News Digital in an exclusive statement. "I am so grateful for each and every person who makes this project possible, and for every shoebox that opens the door for us to tell another child the Good News of Jesus Christ."
Families can also build a shoebox online by selecting items digitally and adding a photo or personal note.
Operation Christmas Child began in 1993, and has since delivered more than 232 million boxes to children in more than 170 countries and territories. Many distributions are coordinated through local churches that pair the gifts with evangelistic programs and community outreach.
"This is an opportunity for children to give to someone else and not want anything in return," Graham said. "We live in a selfish world — but this teaches the next generation the importance of giving."
As the Christmas tree lights reflected off the crowds gathered in midtown Manhattan, Graham’s message tied the ceremony back to the reason millions of families participate in the annual shoebox drive.
"God so loved this world that He gave His only-begotten Son," he said. "That’s what Christmas is all about."
Anyone can pack a shoebox in person or build one online at SamaritansPurse.org/OCC-FoxNews. A QR code provided by Samaritan’s Purse can also be embedded or displayed on-screen.
