Claudia & Michael Cuddyer

228 less fortunate children will have Happy Birthdays thanks to the great support of the Minnesota Twins Wives and players who filled birthday bags following their winning game on July 18th. Special thanks to Claudia and Michael Cuddyer for helping to organize this fun event. 

Watch for some great autographed Minnesota Twins items to be auctioned off  during our Social Summer Online Fundraiser throughout August. 

The group also enjoyed wavers featuring right fielder Michael Cuddyer, which were provided by Animal Fair/Sports & Entertrainment.

We were excited to learn from Bob Salomon, promoter of the book “A Glove of  Their Own” that he has gained the support of this legend at the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center.

A Glove of Their Own is a children’s book that is touching hearts across the nation. When ordering, choose Cheerful Givers on the drop-down menu, and $3.00 per book will be donated to Cheerful Givers.

The next great catcher Bob would like to add to his amazing list of supporters is Joe Mauer. Spread the word!

Supporters and volunteers submitted reviews to earn this honor. Here are a few examples of what they said or you can read them all.

“I’ve seen the results of this organization in… Kids get to receive a gift on their birthday, which wouldn’t necessarily be a given without Cheerful Givers. Parents get to experience the joy of being able to provide a gift to their children. Volunteers of all ages get to learn that giving can be fun!”

“In my opinion, the biggest challenges facing this organization are… helping people understand that the emotions of a child are just as important as keeping them healthy and well fed.”

“If this organization had 10 million bucks, it could… give gifts to every kid in the US and make such a difference in their lives!”

Claudia talks about why she and the Minnesota Twins Wives support Cheerful Givers, what impact she thinks the organization is having and why she encourages others to help.

Why do you support Cheerful Givers and what have you done to help?
When I learned about Cheerful Givers, my son, Casey, was just about to turn one. I pictured all of the wonderful gifts he would most likely receive from friends and family and got choked up thinking that there were so many families out there that wouldn’t be able to do the same for their kids…not because they didn’t want to, but because they have fallen on hard times. Every child should have a gift on his/her birthday!

As part of the Minnesota Twins wives organization, I helped organize a birthday bag event last year where we filled 128 birthday bags. As a group, we also donated over $4,000 to Cheerful Givers to help fill more birthday bags! We will have another event this year where we plan to assemble at least 200 bags.

What impact do you think the organization is having?
I believe that helping improve morale of those in need is a great way to strengthen a community. Something as simple as a birthday gift can mean so much to a child living in poverty… AND to the parents who can now provide that for their child. One day, when they can, they will find a way to give back.

Why would you encourage others to help?
There are many wonderful reasons to help with Cheerful Givers. First and foremost, it is going to brighten a child’s day.  Also, it’s so easy! There are so many people out there that WANT to volunteer or give back somehow but just feel like they don’t have the time or money.  A small donation can really make a difference to Cheerful Givers! You can donate now at cheerfulgivers.org

Note from Cheerful Givers: We send our condolences to Claudia and her family on the recent death of her father. Our prayers and thoughts are with you.

Thanks to donations from local businesses and the school’s own fundraising, more than 30 students were able to make 50 birthday bags, the third year in a row the Skyline High School Key Club in Washington has contributed to our cause.

And not content with their successes, the Clubbers are planning on reaching out to their peers at Eastlake High School to stage a bigger event in the near future.

Read article about them in today’s Sammamish Reporter.

Here’s what one parent recently told us:

I wish to express my sincere appreciation for the bag of birthday gifts for my daughter who turned 9. I am overwhelmed by your generosity, and I praise God for people like you who give generously of their time and the donation. My daughter was excited to receive some new toys. For me, a Mom, I am struggling to pay bills and was unsure how to celebrate with my daughter until I was blessed with your generous gift. Thank You! My needs were met at a difficult time in my life so my daughter was not disappointed. Thank YOU!                   Sincerely, Deanna

Join the Cheerful Givers Birthday Club today!

Many thanks to all of our volunteer photographers for these great pics! If you had a photo taken at the event with a local celebrity, you will find it in a separate set we’ve created for portraits.

The “Great Minnesota Birthday Party” captured the attention of hundreds of mall-goers on Saturday, March 27 at the Mall of America which Governor Pawlenty proclaimed Cheerful Givers Day throughout the state.  M.A. Rosko of Fox 9 News kicked off the event followed by Sergeant First Class Billy Todd of the U.S. Army reading the proclamation.

Tim Mahoney got the crowd into the birthday spirit with his lively musical performance while local celebrities, including former Minnesota Viking Matt Blair, Minnesota Roller Girls, Miss Minnesota 2009 Brooke Kilgarriff, Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders, and Minnesota Blizzard team members helped to collect donations for our charity. A highlight of the event was a “Cheer Off” competition among local cheerleading groups. East Ridge High School from Woodbury took the prize by raising the most dollars but Shakopee High and the Swarm Performance Team were great competitors.

Kids enjoyed coloring contests and face painting while parents listened to singer/guitarist Jeff James play a variety of tunes. Meanwhile, the Barnes & Noble store at the Mall hosted a Cheerful Givers Book Fair where 10% of their proceeds were donated every time a customer mentioned Cheerful Givers at the check-out. The finale of the event brought all of the local celebrities to the stage where they joined in singing Happy Birthday to kids everywhere who don’t get to celebrate their birthday. Proceeds from the event are being used to provide toy-filled birthday gift bags for less fortunate children.

Lots more photos and video coming soon!