Miller creates hundreds of jump ropes for Operation Christmas Child

"I wasn't about to sew lace and ribbons on pillow-case dresses, so when Bill and Kathy Schemmel invited my wife, Phoebe, and me to help at the St. Paul's-Colon Operation Christmas Child workshop in 2016, I planned a quiet evening at home in front of the television."

Those are the words of Gary Miller of Burr Oak as he explains his start as the "jump rope man."

Phoebe said she asked Gary to just drive to Colon with her.

"I knew he'd come in with me and I just hoped a few other men would be at the workshop," she said. "Good thing there was a tableful already at work building fishing and tool kits when Gary walked into the workshop."

"Anyone who knows Bill Schemmel can tell you he can rope you into the craziest of things," Gary said. "Before I could say 'hi' to the other men, Bill was handing me a pile of old T-shirts and a pair of scissors. 'Cut strips', he commanded."

Seven years and hundreds of strips later, Gary is still cutting up T-shirts, braiding the strips and producing jump ropes.

More than 1,000 ropes have been included in the Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes packed at St. Paul's Lutheran Church of Colon. Each rope requires three strips which are braided together. Gary individually cuts each T-shirt into bias strips, then stretches the strip to achieve a degree of curl.

"This is the trick to achieve a tight braid," he said. "I have discovered that only certain T-shirts will produce the twisted strips required to hold a braid for a good jump rope. After all these years I can tell by sight which shirts will become worthy of recycling into OCC shoebox fillers. After I take off my strips, I give the leftovers to a lady who uses the scraps to fill dog-pillows.

"I try to include at least one bright colored strip in each rope to make them appealing and distinctive for each child, so I keep multiple piles to pull from," he said. "I have about 300 ropes done which should meet St. Paul's needs. Now I am working on making ropes for a collation of churches in Battle Creek. Colin King delivers them when he attends regional meetings for the OCC planning board. They must be popular because he is always asking for more."

"We have always been impressed by Gary's dedication," King said. "When we put together an OCC shoe-box we try to include a variety of items — some basic and practical such as school supplies or hygiene items and some just for a child's enjoyment."

The boxes go to 170 different nations. The jump-ropes are universal toys that are good for any ages, individuals or groups, boys or girls and there is no instruction or batteries needed.

"Gary has been a blessing to our ministry," King said. "I have passed out many of his jump ropes to many different churches. Several churches are now making their own jump ropes as a result of his efforts as Gary has been so willing to share his hard learned tips and techniques. Gary was also featured at the Operation Christmas Child booth at the En Gedi Music Festival last year."

"Cutting and braiding keeps me occupied so Phoebe can work on her dresses for the girl's boxes," Gary said. "Now there is the one who deserves a story."

The group is scheduling OCC workshops for August, September and October at St. Paul's again. Anyone who would like to join in braiding jump ropes or in assembling other games, toys, or items for inclusion in the shoeboxes may contact the church.

"I'll be announcing the dates and times of the workshops on St. Paul's Facebook page," said Karin Malesh, OCC coordinator at St. Paul's. "We are already collecting items for filling boxes such as winter hats, socks and school items and evaluating new craft ideas for the workshops."

For those unfamiliar with Operation Christmas Child, it is a program developed by the Franklin Graham Ministries organization. Each year volunteers fill a shoebox with small gifts on their own or with a group such as our church. The boxes are sent to a central receiving site, then distributed by local outreach teams. Special Bible lessons and booklets in local languages are offered to the children as an additional option, but no child is required to participate in these Gospel presentations in order to get a box.

"I am thankful that we have this opportunity to share Christ's love with the world's children while meeting some very basic needs," Malesh said. "Working with people such as Gary and seeing what he does with just a T-shirt to bring joy to a child inspires me and, yes, brings me great joy, too." 

St. Paul's Lutheran Church is located at 484 S. Burr Oak Rd in Colon.

Churches, social groups or service organizations wishing to fill Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes may contact Colin King at colinkingp@yahoo.com for resources and ideas for utilizing OCC as part of their Christian outreach efforts.

This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: News