Cheerful Givers

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Lots of online mentions of the Cheerful Givers Birthday Bash
momtalk.com
blacktie-minnesota.com
mallofamerica.com

Sports Medicine Has A New Meaning
The Minnesota Sports Medicine Center recently took time from their important work to make about a hundred kids smile on their birthday. After filling gift bags, the group delivered them to Mary's Place in Minneapolis which provides a safe place for families by providing transitional housing.

Cities 97 Sampler Sales
Early in the morning on November 15th, you could see long lines formed outside Twin Cities Target stores as music fans waited to get their hands on the latest Cities 97 Sampler. 30,000 copies of the CD quickly sold out with proceeds benefiting local charities. And Cheerful Givers was very pleased to learn they were among those charities.

The CD includes 19 tracks featuring artists such as John Mayer, Counting Crows, Colbie Caillat, Shawn Colvin and others. The tracks were recorded live in concert or in the radio station's Studio C. This is the 19th year the radio station has released the CD.

Youth Group Wanted To Do It Again
Forty-nine teenagers from All Saints Lutheran Church in Minnetonka, MN wanted to take a project from start to finish. So they each went out and purchased a number of toys and filled gift bags as part of their youth group project. According to Brenda Lem, Group Coordinator, "they loved this project so much last year, they wanted to do it again." Way to go, teens!

Laura's 25 Days of Making A Difference
She has been described by WGRZ News in Buffalo, New York as "an international inspiration." And last month Laura Stockman turned 11 years old!

Three years ago, Laura's grandfather, Al Stockman, was diagnosed with a form of brain cancer and passed away six months later. In December, 2007, Laura decided the best way to remember her Grandpa was by living her life like he did - by making a difference and being a leader. She chose to honor his memory by trying to make a difference every day for 25 days. So she launched the Twenty Five Days To Make A Difference website. And the site took off. She had a thousand web hits just 18 hours after posting her first page.

Laura then decided she wanted to spend 2008 working on causes that her readers could support. Lucky for us, Laura found Cheerful Givers and decided to include our cause during the month of March. We're thrilled that people everywhere were being encouraged to fill birthday gift bags and to support Cheerful Givers.

Beacon Academy Blitz
Beacon Academy which operates as a K-5 charter elementary school, recently held its 4th annual Birthday Bag Blitz - a tradition started during the first year the school was open. Planning began with students performing a short skit about the Blitz at their student assembly.

Recognizing the importance of teaching service to others, the Birthday Bag Blitz has become one of the school's favorite service projects, according to June Leahy, Program Coordinator. "It is one the students can really relate to. They know what it is like to receive gifts on their birthday and can imagine what it would be like not to receive birthday gifts. The students learn empathy and feel good about themselves when they understand that they are helping less fortunate children in their community. And they can participate so fully in this project - from getting and bringing the toys in, to assembling the birthday bags, and some of the students even help to bring them over to the food shelf. That's why Beacon students really like being Cheerful Givers!"

250 students helped to fill birthday bags and later they were delivered to PRISM (People Responding In Social Ministry), a social service agency that provides families in need with food, financial assistance, transportation and other services in times of financial hardships. A big Thank You to everyone at Beacon Academy!

University of Houston Sorority
15 members of the Gamma Alpha Omega Sorority at the University of Houston filled birthday bags during a recent Rush Event. Bags were delivered to The Bridge which is a refuge for abused, assaulted, homeless women and children.

Leo Buscaglia Foundation Awards Grant
Cheerful Givers is a very proud recipient of a grant from this wonderful foundation and plans to use the funds to hold a Birthday Bag Blitz on national Make A Difference Day in October where we will invite kids who don't have a chance to participate in other volunteer events an opportunity to help others. Read more on our blog.

New Crayons
Do you remember being a kid and getting new crayons? A group of adults were recently talking about their memories of opening a pack of new colors and how good it made them feel.

We would like every child who is now living in poverty to be able to experience that simple joy of opening a new pack of crayons. Thanks to a generous donation from Pro Source Paper, there will be 4,000 kids who just might become future artists because of their donation. Now if we could just get about 40,000 more dropped at our door!

Cargill Cares
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. would have been proud of the way Cargill employees and their families celebrated his birthday. 430 less fortunate kids will get a birthday gift from their parents on their special day all because of the volunteers who filled birthday gift bags at Cargill's corporate headquarters.

Besides "having fun" and "being very uplifting," here's what they said they learned:

"There are over 130K families (in Minnesota) in need of birthday gifts"
"That it doesn't take a lot of effort to help others. It just takes willingness."
"In an hour you can do a lot with a group."
"That food banks don't have resources for birthdays."
"It's not as vital as food, but kids need more than what is vital to life."

Thank you Cargill employees and families for caring!

Why Books in Birthday Bags?
By James Kwee
Among the toys, the candy, and other fun items that fill a birthday bag, another simple treasure can often be found. Cheerful Givers has long encouraged the inclusion of an item that is both enjoyable and educational -- a book.
Studies show that it is crucial for children to begin developing their reading skills at a young age if they aspire to a life of success. Read full article

Survey Says
Thanks to those who completed the short survey in our last e-newsletter. Here's a sampling of the responses we received.

Why do you read our newsletter?
"Like to hear about the organization's activities and events as well as get ideas about how other people and groups support the organization"
"Keeps me up-to-date on all the fantabulous stuff y'all do!"

Read more survey results

Party & Paintball Bring Donations
Employees at Associated/Allied in Eagan, MN found a way to support Cheerful Givers while they had some fun. At their holiday party, employees purchased raffle tickets to win prizes that their vendors and company contributed. Thanks to many giving employees, they raised $2,120. They also held a team building challenge in which employees played paintball. Raffle tickets from that event raised another $360 which was all donated to Cheerful Givers.

Brian Dawson, General Manager, Northwest Division simply said "We hope this helps your organization and the positive impact you make on the community." To Brian and the fantastic folks at Associated/Allied, we say Thank You!

Artis & Max Celebrate Their 12th Birthday
Artis Curiskis and Max Wolk celebrated their 12th birthday by inviting classmates to bring toys to their joint birthday party. Friends brought gift bags filled with toys which Max and Artis planned to donate to Cheerful Givers.

Then on a Saturday afternoon, these guys and their parents hand-delivered all the gifts and talked about how much they enjoyed being able to help other kids celebrate their birthday. Kids like Artis and Max are great role models for kids of all ages.

Work Training for Students With Disabilities
For the last ten years, junior and senior high school students with disabilities in District 287, Brooklyn Park, MN, have found assembling birthday bags a rewarding project. This program makes it possible for students to experience job success by providing a work training program whose goal is to assess and teach students how to be productive, contributing and valuable members of a working community. Read full article

Blitz at Opal In-Home Services
Three-year-old, Jaysa, wanted to help her Mom at work, so she came to Opal In-Home Services in Eagan, MN for her first experience as a Cheerful Giver.

280 birthday gift bags were filled with books and toys, thanks to the generosity of employees there. Then the gift bags began their journey to reach the kids who need them. Some went to Second Harvest Heartland for distribution to the many shelters and food shelves they serve. Others were taken to the Cap Agency in Shakopee which serves more than 1,200 families each month at their food shelf and each year they provide services to 28,000 residents in Scott, Carver and Dakota counties. Judi Moonen, Deputy Director of Operations, said "this donation will help tremendously."

We hope that employees everywhere will consider holding a blitz this year.

Have Batteries - Need Toys
A bit of a twist of fate. Once in awhile we get toys donated that require batteries, and sometimes it's a challenge to find a donor who has batteries. However, we now have 1,200 batteries (AA size) and need toys to go with them. Do you know of anyone who might solve this little dilemma?
Let us know

Celebratory Craziness
By Lainey S. Cronk
Twelve elementary-age kids leap up and down, hollering incessantly at their teammates, who are laboring across the room garbed in oversized coats, rakish hats, and mismatched shoes. It's one of the most popular games of my childhood: an un-named relay race that my mother found in some book, in which each member of two teams have to race down the room, throw on all the clothes piled there, run back and remove all their costume before hauling it back for the next contestant.
Despite a birthday falling just days before Christmas, I've had more than my fair share of marvelously zany birthday parties. Read full article

Briana Has a Blitz on Her Big 30
Briana Keller, (far right, front row) who is leading a pilot program in Puget Sound, celebrated her 30th birthday by hosting a community birthday bag blitz. She spent three months collecting money and toy donations from friends, family members, co-workers, and even total strangers.

Briana received $2,366 in cash from 43 donors and a variety of toys. On January 12th, 50 volunteers of all ages met at a local library to assemble 500 birthday bags. Briana was amazed at how many people showed up, how eager they were to help, and how fast they worked! The bags were delivered to an agency called Hopelink, which will distribute the bags through food banks and transitional housing programs.

Bears, Bears & More Bears We've been blessed with bears recently, and what a great inclusion they are in birthday gift bags.

Little Hero Bears came from the Vermont Teddy Bear Co.
Bears dressed in fun sweaters (see photo) were donated by employees at Ceridian
$1,000 grant was received from the Build-A-Bear Workshop Bear Hugs Foundation
More bears are welcome! Contact donateproducts@cheerfulgivers.org

Unique Ideas to Show Support
Seems there's always someone coming up with a new way to support Cheerful Givers. Here's a sampling of some recent creative ideas:

International Lunch Sampler - 26 international dishes were prepared by members of the Information Technology Dept. of Park Nicollet Health Services (read full article)
High School Grad Party - One local high school decided to include a fun service project, (i.e. filling birthday bags), as part of their all-night senior party
A Boy Scout is working on his Eagle requirements and wants to do his Eagle Project to support our mission
To prepare for their 4th annual Birthday Bag Blitz, students at Beacon Academy performed a skit demonstrating the project at an all-school assembly
Our "Happy Birthday Certificate" is being used by lots of folks who want to give a meaningful gift on a special birthday or for someone who might not need another box of whatever.

Cheers for the Engineers!

Twenty-five engineers from the Malt-O-Meal Company wanted to include a hands-on volunteer opportunity as part of their recent day-out meeting. So when they heard about Cheerful Givers from board member, Mike Bollinger, they quickly got management support. The result of their efforts is that

Some Special Ladies
Every Wednesday morning for the last several years, a group of very special ladies get together at The Homestead at Maplewood to fill birthday bags. Jackie has been involved since the beginning and recently said "It's good to do something for others. I always volunteered in the past, and this is a way I can volunteer now." Barb, age 92, is our oldest volunteer and she commented "It is just so nice to know we are making those kids happy on their birthday."

Special thanks to Jodi, who organizes this effort, and everyone involved for continuing this wonderful tradition.

Our Lady of Grace School Families Fill Birthday Bags
From the Sun Current Newspaper
More than 30 families from Our Lady of Grace School in Edina gathered Nov. 10 to fill birthday gift bags for Minnesota children whose parents can't afford to buy them a birthday gift. Volunteers filled 500 birthday gift bags with toys and books for the Cheerful Givers program.

Kids Helping Kids on National Make A Difference Day
From smokefreedakota.org
Three local nonprofits got together on national Make A Difference Day to support the mission of Cheerful Givers by assembling 546 toy-filled birthday gift bags for less fortunate children. Mentors and mentees from the Kids ‘n Kinship program, in addition to filling the gift bags, also had an opportunity to learn more about the Cheerful Givers and Smoke Free Dakota nonprofit organizations. Read entire article.

Three nonprofits partner for Birthday Bag Blitz
From the Sun Current Newspaper
Three Dakota County nonprofits will clelbrate national Make a Difference Day on Saturday, Oct. 27, by assembling 500 birthday gift bags for underpriveliedged kids. Read entire article.

Fun Night at Fun Sisters
It was a fun night at The Fun Sisters Boutique in Minneapolis where shoppers gathered for our "Wine, Women & Purses" event last week. Thanks to our wonderful supporters, guests enjoyed carrot cake from Byerly's of Eagan, coffee from Caribou on 46th & Nicollet and a sampling of wine from donors. A few lucky shoppers won door prizes for items including purses and jewelry. We also appreciated the PR efforts from MomTalk.com and KARE 11. Check out our fun photos!

Go Fifth Graders
A fifth grade teacher at Oak Ridge Elementary in Eagan, MN heard about our organization and they are having the fifth graders donate something to Cheerful Givers on their birthday in lieu of giving out candy and cupcakes to the class. The teachers will collect the donated items and they will be delivering them to our organization.

The Giving Chain
By Lainey S. Cronk
Yesterday I taught a first-grader at the local Boys & Girls Club how to draw a flower in a circle using a protractor. She was excited by this simple geometry, and spent a long time coloring the flower and laboriously writing a "To/from" message, complete with my misspelled name. Then, without any words, she presented it to me. I expressed honest delight, impressed at her dedication and the stained-glass look of the flower. The small smile on her face told that she was satisfied with a job well done and well received. Read the full article.

Briana's 30th Birthday
Briana Keller, the Puget Sound Coordinator for Cheerful Givers, has celebrated past birthdays at a ski park, roller skating rink, and dueling piano bar. She decided months ago that she wanted to do something big to celebrate her 30th birthday in January 2008 and soon realized she could use her big day to help others celebrate theirs in partnership with Cheerful Givers. She will be hosting a community birthday bag blitz in Redmond, Washington on January 12th. Her goal is to collect $3,000 over the next 3 months so she can help 300 kids in the Seattle area celebrate their birthdays. If you want to help Briana accomplish her goal by her 30th birthday, you can donate money, toys, gift-filled birthday bags, or time. Learn more.

A Bounty of Beanies
By Jeannie LeMere, Executive Liaison, Marketing & Products, Thrivent Financial
I just want to tell you about a terrific thing that has happened at Thrivent. We're always hunting for really cute stuffed animals at a decent price, and several times people in our group have donated Beanie Babies. We decided to put an article in our Daily News (online company newsletter) asking employees if they had any they wished to donate. It's been amazing - just in the last week we have received well over 600 beautiful, new Beanies from employees who either received them as gifts or bought them during the years when they were so popular, and now don't know what to do with them. They are just so thrilled to have them being put to good use, and we, of course, are thrilled to have them. We're even getting them from our Appleton, WI office.

I'm sure there are many thousands of Beanies out there in people's closets that could be willingly donated. Send your Beanies to Cheerful Givers.

How Do You Say, "Thank You?"
by Joann Keder
Do you like to be thanked publicly, with a grand display of affection or do you prefer a simple hug? Is a formal, written thank you necessary in this age of instant messaging and fast-paced living, or are a few words of encouragement enough?

For all of the questionable research we have paid for, there doesn't seem to be a poll or scientific study on thank yous. Without grant funding or piles of data, I decided to conduct my own informal research. Read the full article.

Free Water Park Passes
Hey whatta deal! Two free passes to the awesome new Water Park of America, adjacent to the Mall of America, when you register at MomTalk.com. Created by moms and for moms, MomTalk.com provides timely, relevant and trusted content. Log on, register and you get your two free passes sent to you. MomTalk.com is also a sponsor of our Wine, Women and Purses event.

Customers Contribute
The customers of Associated Material Handling enjoyed an Appreciation Golf Outing on August 17 sponsored by Associated Material Handling of Eagan, MN. During the outing, customers purchased raffle tickets for prizes and Associated raised $500 which was also matched by their company who chose to donate these funds to Cheerful Givers.

We hope these customers realize the difference they made by participating in this outing and in working with an organization the caliber of Associated. This $1,000 will make a lot of kids smile on their birthday.

Enterprising Volunteers
Because the Enterprise Strategic Sourcing Department at the Carlson Companies embraces corporate social responsibility, they chose to hold a Birthday Bag Blitz as one of multiple volunteer events that are scheduled on an annual basis.

"We considered several organizations. However, based on an overwhelming response from our team, we chose Cheerful Givers," said Kate Westermeyer, director. "Knowing that you can make such a huge impact on hundreds of children in a short amount of time is immeasurable. It was a positive team-building event for us. In all, there just doesn't seem to be anything more genuine than helping put a smile on a child's face."

Fun at Fundraisers
Last month we participated in a couple of fundraisers to help provide a few more birthday gifts for summer birthdays. We scrambled a bit on the third of July to come up with a new pizza supplier for the Eagan Funfest, and were thankful that Dominoes came through for us. Although our volunteers had to sit through some storms, they managed to sell a number of pizzas before the fireworks began on the fourth of July.

Fundraiser Fun at Chevy's The Chevy's Restaurant in Bloomington hosted a Cheerful Givers Day where a number of board members, volunteers and their families enjoyed a Mexican feast and a portion of their proceeds helped to support our cause.

If you've ever participated in a successful fundraiser, let us know about it.

Bravo for Beanies
Kudos to Grace and Nate Miller, ages 7 and 10, members of Mary, Mother of the Church in Burnsville, MN.

Last spring, a Cheerful Givers volunteer was chatting with her Bible Study break-out group about our mission. That planted a seed in Ellen Miller, a Girl Scout leader. Armed with an annual report and a sample Birthday Bag, she pitched the idea of a Birthday Bag Blitz as a project for the Girl Scout cookie proceeds. Ultimately, another worthy project was selected, but not before Grace and Nate heard from their Mom about Cheerful Givers and how it works..

They decided that they could contribute by donating Beanie Babies from their collection to be included in Birthday Bags. They were excited to be able to help other children. Grace culled through their combined collection and selected a shopping-bag-full of beanies in perfect condition to be distributed to kids less fortunate than they are.

Thank you, young Cheerful Givers, Grace and Nate!

Ecolab Cheerful Givers Expand To Grand Forks
Thanks to the fantastic example of the St. Paul and Eagan Ecolab Cheerful Givers groups, there is a new group that's been formed in Ecolab's Grand Forks office. They plan to hold their first bag blitz in October and to continue semi-annually. Birthday bags will be donated to shelters and food shelves in their community.

Summer Blitzes
The heat didn't keep a number of employee groups from holding a summer Birthday Bag Blitz. A group of Directors from the Carlson Companies took time from their two-day meeting at the Radisson Plaza Hotel in Minneapolis to assemble 800 birthday bags. Thanks to people like Tony Tolliver, Community Relations Manager, word is spreading throughout the company and future blitzes are already being planned.

Meanwhile, about 50 employees at Metlife in New York filled 500 birthday bags one July afternoon. According to Katie Hebert, Manager of Third Party Marketing, "It went great and all the employees loved it. Everyone was saying what a great program and how good it felt to give back."

General Mills Innovative Group Generates 1,000 Smiles
1,000 birthday smiles were generated on June 25^th when the Innovative Group at General Mills ended their day-long meeting by filling 1,000 birthday bags in record time. Here’s what Jamie Kinnear, group leader, had to say about the event: “Your organization does great things and we were very pleased to help in a small way. I thought your words about Cheerful Givers and your mission were inspiring and set a great tone for the event.”

Saints Win—And We Do Too
Our volunteers had a great time celebrating together at the Cheerful Givers night at the Saint Paul Saints game on June 12. We even had a “Cheerful Giver In Training” come to join the fun. A portion of the proceeds went to support Cheerful Givers, as did money raised through online auction items like escorting the pig, leading “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” and more. Be sure to check out the fun photos.

A “Woman of Note”
Cheerful Givers volunteer Mary Glessner of Grand Forks, North Dakota was recently nominated as a “Woman of Note” in the Red River Valley Women Today magazine. Because of the article, she’s been contacted by a Kiwanis group and a church, and asked to come speak about Cheerful Givers. Thanks for mentioning us, Mary, and for spreading the word about our work to others!

Sign Up and Start Walking
Join Cheerful Givers and about 150 other organizations at the Headwater Foundation’s “Walk for Justice” on Sunday, September 16. You can enjoy the beautiful three-mile route together with other Cheerful Givers volunteers—you’re invited to gather pledges, and raise funds for our organization at the same time. There is no registration fee, and a free lunch is included. Contact Sarah – secarlso@yahoo.com to sign up.

In The News
Check out the July issue of Minnesota Monthly Magazine which includes our Master of Ceremonies, BT (Brian Turner of Cities 97 Radio) and Giselle Ugarte (Miss Teen Minnesota) joining me at the Mall of America Rotunda for our Big Birthday Bash.

Your Gifts—In Action
Whether you’ve given birthday bags or given money, have you ever wished you could meet a family you’re helping, and see their joy firsthand? As a volunteer for the Mount Calvary Family Resource Center, Darcy Schatz of Eagan gets to see the smiles on the parents’ faces—and recently shared this story.

“A man came in to pick up his food order,” Darcy said, recalling one of her favorite memories of working with Cheerful Givers. “It was his daughter’s birthday, and he asked if we had any toys for a nine-year-old girl.”

She checked a few birthday bags for just the right thing, and soon came across a bag which included a small sketch pad and markers. “He said it was perfect, because she loved to draw,” Darcy said. . “This man was so happy that he could give his daughter a birthday.”

For volunteers like Darcy, who are working with families that are going through a particularly difficult time, it’s a great source of joy to give away birthday bags from Cheerful Givers.

“All of our volunteers love the partnership with Cheerful Givers,” Darcy said. “It’s an amazing feeling to help a parent who is feeling the stress of poverty or severe financial strain to find some relief that at least they can give their child a birthday.”

Inspired by the Book
Last month, we received a donation through our website from a man who had read Do I Have a Birthday Too? The Cheerful Givers Story. He’d heard about the book because he’s friends with the author’s sister, and came to our event at the Mall of America to make a donation. He picked up a copy of the book and after reading it, here’s what he said:

“The Cheerful Givers story is very inspiring, so I thought I would make another donation after realizing all the hard work that has gone into the organization. Obviously, you should be very proud of yourself and your organization.”

Isn’t it great to hear how this book is inspiring people all over the country? It’s even helping us serve more kids—so, have you read it yet? Remember, you can purchase a copy online (a percentage of the proceeds go back to Cheerful Givers)—afterwards, share it with family and friends. If you’ve already read it, let us know what about the book struck you.

Third Graders Shine at Sunny Hollow
For the third year, third graders at Sunny Hollow Elementary School in New Hope supported Cheerful Givers for their annual service project. The school is designated as an international peace site, and giving back to the community is part of their commitment.

In this case, the four third-grade teachers at Sunny Hollow asked the children to bring in at least five items for the birthday bags. Then, they all got together in the gym to decorate the bags and put it all together.

“The kids always love to see all the items displayed on the tables when they come in the gym,” says teacher Laura Feld. “They are always surprised at how much stuff is brought in!”

“The kids seem very proud of their finished bags and seem to really take ownership of them,” Feld continues. “It's really a simple project for the kids but one they really seem to enjoy, year after year.”

Looking Ahead
Mark your calendar for these opportunities to get together with your friends at Cheerful Givers.

Showcase Eagan
Thursday, May 17, 5-7:30 pm
Eagan Civic Arena (3870 Pilot Knob Rd)

If you live in the Eagan area, stop by Showcase Eagan on May 17 to say hello. This event brings the entire community together for family fun and activities, as well as an opportunity to learn more about local community groups, churches, clubs, and volunteer opportunities.

Cheerful Givers Night with the St. Paul Saints
Tuesday, June 12, 7:05 pm
Midway Stadium

Come enjoy a fun night out featuring baseball and so much more! St. Paul Saints games are known as much for their off-field antics as the games themselves. Experience it with us for just $14 (including a Saints hat, game ticket, hot dog and soda)—part of the proceeds will support Cheerful Givers. Get tickets online at saintsgroups.com using the password “cheerful.”

And if you, or someone you know, might want a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to “escort the pig” (Saint’s mascot), lead the 7th inning stretch singing, sit on the field during the game, or introduce some batters from the top of the dugout, visit our online auction now.

What They’re Saying…
Giving Up Her Gifts
"For the second year in a row, my daughter, Tess King asked her friends to make a donation to Cheerful Givers instead of buying gifts for her. Tess celebrated her 14th birthday with nine friends."
—Dawn King (Tess is pictured in front of the birthday cake)

Light and Hope
“In a world so separated, I sometimes wonder if we care for our fellow brothers and sisters at all anymore. But then I see organizations like yours who are taking ACTION to try to bring light and hope to people's lives. There, but for the grace of God goes I. Right?”
—Sarah Lopes, Minneapolis

Celebrating the Fabulous 40s
"It's our group's second Cheerful Givers party and we already heard back from Casa de Esperanza [where birthday bags from their first party were donated], that the children who got our toys love them. This is such a great way to celebrate our 40th birthdays!"
—The Women's Night Out Crew (Judy Bourdeau-Garcia, Julie Amundson, Karen Skewes, Maerin Renee, and Jenzi Silverman), St. Louis Park, MN

Good Times…That Do Good
"We have a BBQ every summer and ask our friends and family to donate to a charity."
—Tooter and Debbie Howell, Portland, Oregon

One Student’s Senior Project Makes a Difference
Ashley Heether, a high school senior at Naches Valley High School in Naches, Washington, is helping bring smiles to the faces of Washington children on their birthdays.

For her senior project, Ashley decided to partner with Cheerful Givers because she wanted to help underprivileged children. She created colorful flyers and donation boxes, asked local businesses if they would be willing to display the materials, and then monitored the donations as they came in. She collected a variety of items such as coloring books, crayons, balls, puzzles, flash cards, and jump ropes, which will be used by Cheerful Givers volunteers in Seattle.

To complete her project, Ashley wrote a paper and gave a presentation regarding her work with Cheerful Givers. “I started crying when I started talking about it,” Ashley said. “I never knew how much doing this for the organization would affect me. I am grateful that I have been able to be a part of this.”

Cheerful Givers and children in less-fortunate Washington families are grateful for Ashley’s hard work!

Tennessee Teen Inspires Others to Serve
When sophomore James Kwee began attending Hilger Higher Learning in Chattanooga, TN, he felt like something was missing. As a new student, he noticed the school didn’t have any organizations centered around community service—so, Kwee asked if he could create one.

After getting the green-light from the school’s administration, the Hilger Philanthropist Club was born. They started with a school-wide canned goods drive last February, and soon began planning their next venture -- a talent show where they could bring in people from all over the community, and raise money for a good cause.

Why Cheerful Givers?

After a search on the internet, the group chose Cheerful Givers as the organization they wanted to support. According to Kwee, one of the things that attracted their group to Cheerful Givers was the fact that birthday bags are such a tangible way to bring hope to others. “We wanted to be able to do something that directly affected the people we wanted to help,” said Kwee. “We also thought it would be fun to make birthday bags and shop for things to put in the bags. We didn't just want to give money to some big organization since they couldn't really appreciate all the hard work we had put into raising the money.”

Kwee and his fellow philanthropists found Cheerful Givers to be a great match for their age group. “I think Cheerful Givers is one of the best charity organizations for teens and young people to get involved in,” he said. “Shopping for birthday gifts and putting together gifts for kids easily lets people be creative and get involved.”

The Big Day

On April 20, the Hilger Philanthropist Club presented their talent show. They invited the entire community—from friends and family, to everyone else. “I was really worried and stressed out about things going wrong during the talent show,” Kwee said. “But amazingly, everything went smoothly and there were no problems whatsoever. We had a good turnout and the show grossed over $500.”

"The highlight for me was seeing so many people [come] together for this event to help raise money for charity,” said Reid Carmack, another member of the Hilger Philanthropist Club. “It's great seeing that many people who care about what happens to those less fortunate than us. It was also great to see how much our hard work was appreciated and to see the talent show come together the way it did and without any problems."

Classmate Sorche Morgan also enjoyed the event. "First of all, I loved the whole show,” she said. “I didn’t know Hilger had all that talent…I'm glad you raised enough money to give all the little kids presents.”

Getting Creative

The students’ creativity continued beyond the event, when it came time to shop for presents. “We wanted to get the most out of our money, so we found a lot of great bargains,” Kwee said. “We try to get stuff that we would have played with as a kid or loved. I love toy stores; so even though I don’t play with toys anymore, I have a blast shopping for other kids!”

Another way they made the most of the dollars they raised was by asking stores to donate toys and gifts, and also by asking friends and neighbors to donate gift bags. “Ironically, the hardest part is getting the bags because we do not want to have to spend lots of money just on gift bags,” Kwee said. Their goal is to fill 70 bags, and as of press time they’ve filled about 50—with plenty more sources for gift bag donations left to check out.

More from HHL To Come!

As for the future, the Hilger Philanthropist Club plans to continue—and intends to fill and donate more birthday bags, too. “Everyone in the club wants to continue working with Cheerful Givers,” Kwee said. “The club wants to continue with charity projects in the summer, too. Talk and planning of an outdoor summer concert is in the works, so hopefully we will be doing another birthday bag blitz later this year!”

The Cheerful Givers Story is Coming
Cheerful Givers and New Heaven Publishing are excited to announce the March 2007 release of Do I Have a Birthday Too?: The Cheerful Givers Story.

For more information about the book, and to reserve your copy of The Cheerful Givers Story, visit www.writingforthecause.com. The cost of the book will be $8.95, and 50% of the proceeds will directly benefit Cheerful Givers.

As you reserve your copy, remember that The Cheerful Givers Story will also make a terrific gift for family, friends and co-workers!

Having Fun & Helping Other Kids
Mary Glessner of Grand Forks, ND said “the highlight was gathering around a table and assembling colorful birthday bags for other children.” Her four-year old daughter made her family realize how special the project was to do together when she exclaimed “we’re having fun and helping other kids.” Their birthday bags were delivered to the Community Violence and Intervention Center.

A Bonding Experience in Record Time
What would you think a group of Travel professionals, who spend their workday in places around the world, might do when they finally get together all in one place? You guessed it! Hold a Cheerful Givers Birthday Bag Blitz. 36 members of the Travel Operations Department at BI (the business improvement company in Edina, MN) not only filled 502 birthday bags but were determined to do it in record time. And they did! After quickly forming teams and deciding who should do what, their operation began. Thirty minutes later, they were done.

Leslie Masterson, Travel Operations Team Leader, said “They really had a good time and it was a fun, bonding experience. They are a very high energy, competitive group. They loved the fact they flew through it fast. They really enjoyed being able to give their time to Cheerful Givers to make a difference in a child’s life.”

Wherever you are today, we hope those great travel pros know they brought plenty of birthday smiles at a time when they were needed.

Birthday Alternatives
There’s been a lot of press lately around here about how some parents are spending tremendous amounts of money on kid’s birthday parties and in the process becoming very stressed with planning and worrying about the outcome. An organization was formed, www.birthdayswithoutpressure.org , that is suggesting more simple parties. They give examples of a party for a one-year-old where the gift-opening lasted two hours, and the child slept through most of it. Or how about seven- year-olds being picked up in stretch limos to attend the party of a classmate. There’s also a Mom out there who offers her child $200 not to have a party.

Seems like the perfect time for us to suggest alternatives to parents who might be forgetting that what they are teaching their children today will make a difference in what their children teach their children.

Experimenting in Another World
Not long ago I learned about the virtual world called Second Life where 2.5 million people have visited and often return. A recent Minneapolis Star Tribune newspaper article “Reality Growing in Virtual World” explains how businesses are making use of this world for meetings, training, sales and research. They also say “it’s for people who are experimenting and pushing the boundaries.” Cheerful Givers recently entered Second Life with a booth in a mall which was a donation from Bill Nissim at iBranz with the hope that people in this other world will also see a need and make a donation. He cleverly designed bright yellow t-shirts which are given out free to the avatars who visit the booth. We plan to have a virtual walk there as we “push our boundaries” in an effort to raise needed funds.

From the Betty Crocker Kitchens
Last month our partnership with General Mills grew as we worked with several employee groups to fill birthday gift bags. The External Customer Relations Dept. filled their Atrium with over 1,000 birthday bags. The next day 150 GCom employees used the Betty Crocker Kitchens to create 1,500 gift bags.

We were also selected as a $10,000 grant recipient for our “Communities of Color” proposal. We knew it was a competitive process with over 260 applications, but were encouraged when a team of five General Mills employees and managers came to observe the special education kids at the Vocational Evaluation and Training School fill birthday gift bags. We were very pleased to be one of 50 organizations in the greater Twin Cities area to receive the grant.

Kids Who Care
Farmington 8th Grade Girls got up early on their day off school because they couldn’t wait to put together 144 birthday bags.

Beacon Academy held its third annual school- wide Birthday Bag Blitz. “I think it’s becoming a favorite tradition at the school” said June Leahy.

Middle School Ministries at Prince of Peace Church, Burnville, MN “Our students loved using their own money to buy gifts for children in need. Not only were the students able to provide a gift, but they learned about giving to others” said Rachel Touberg.

Going Once
Don’t forget our monthly online auctions are continuing every month with new items. Treat yourself or a friend to Caribou Coffee for a year, a massage at Keep In Touch or Aquamassage, or how about a gift card from Sunsets, Bubba Gumps or Outback Steak?

Bid Now!

Hands On Twin Cities Volunteer Expo

When: Saturday, February 10 from 10 am – 4 pm

Where: Mall of America

Hands On Twin Cities and the Mall of America are teaming up to showcase hundreds of volunteer opportunities at more than 100 non-profit and community based organizations in the Twin Cities area. Be sure to stop by and visit the Cheerful Givers booth!