Bringing joy, hope and dignity to homeless children with the gift of a birthday party.
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See what's new this month...
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Nine year old
Desmond Dobbs
is an entrepreneur. Last summer, he started selling otter pops in front of his house. When he didn’t get enough sales, he took his business door-to-door. Desmond enjoyed the process of providing a service and earning money, but when summer was over, so was his otter pop business.
As Desmond and his brother have been donating their birthday presents to Birthday Dreams for years, he was very familiar with the mission—he
decided to put his talent and passion to work for a cause. He
went door-to-door to spread the word about our mission and to solicit donations. Desmond collected
$617,
enough to help 6 homeless children have birthday celebrations with
all
the trimmings.
Equally important, he raised awareness of a need in our community, and Birthday Dreams' mission to serve.
Desmond is a shining example of the kids-helping-kids philosophy, which we truly value and appreciate. Thank you, Desmond!
Pictured left, Desmond proudly presents the money he raised to Birthday Dreams co-founder Chris Spahn.
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Our thanks to Renton Regional Community Foundation and
The Next Curve for awarding Birthday Dreams with a generous
$750 grant.
One of the goals of The Next Curve is to increase flow of charitable dollars to areas of need in Renton.
Community support is essential to our organization's ability to continue to service the community—and we greatly appreciate the support.
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For some time now, Marlesa Germain
and her daughters have used their shopping trips as an opportunity to spend time together, and give back to the community, too. They purchase items from popular shops like Justice to donate to Birthday Dreams.
Last week, Marlesa and her daughters brought in a amazing collection of clothes and gifts that they had compiled.
In-kind donations are always in high demand and tremendously appreciated.
Our thanks to Marlesa and her daughters for their continued support.
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The Gift of a Smile: A Birthday Dreams Story
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In early 2018, a permanently disabled single mother lost her housing and became homeless. This mother has a servant's heart, providing for 13 children, three of whom were "hard to place" children that she adopted. With wait lists for permanent housing 2+ years long, she and her children have been couch surfing and staying in low-end motels. Basic needs like food and shelter a top priority, the holidays were looking bleak—let alone any hope for any type of celebration for one of her sons who had a December birthday.
Aware of the need, the child's school offered to reach out to Birthday Dreams. Circumstances were such that the mother was unable to hold the party at her transitional housing, so plan B was set into action. The Birthday-in-a-Box was delivered to the school. The celebration took place over the lunch period prior to the winter break, making the young man's birthday and holiday season a little brighter. This is the feedback we received from the mother, "It was the difference between despair and hopelessness to faith in people and sunshine in a sea of darkness. We are forever grateful."
In describing the impact of the birthday on her son, she said, "It took a kid totally depressed about his situation to kid with a big smile, who feel accepted by his peers and hopeful for the future."
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Save the Date
Please join us on
Saturday, May 4th at 11 AM
to help us celebrate our 10th birthday.
There will be fun and games for the whole family including Minute to Win It contests, carnival games and a cake competition at the professional, amateur and "kid" levels.
Click here
to learn more and to register to attend.
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2019 Birthday Club
Thank You!
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The Birthday Club
is our new donor recognition society. Annual gifts of $250 and more will help restore, if only for a day, a homeless child’s dignity and sense of joy with the gift of a birthday party. These donors also help Birthday Dreams to be here for the long-term by building a base of donors who believe in what we do. Please join our list of Founding Members with your gift today!
Founding Birthday Club Members will remain in the club throughout 2019.
New Birthday Club members will be added quarterly.
Superheroes ($5,000 and up):
Ben and Shelby Dobbs, The KidStarter Project, Microsoft Matching Gifts Program, and the Seattle Foundation.
Heroes ($1,000 - $4,999):
Susan Allison, Allan and Merry Avery, Susan Beisheim, Greg Engberg and Meeghan Black, Laura Cameron, Garth Conner, Kimberly Cremers, Janine and Robert Dodson, Priya FNU, Steven and Cameron Gillit, Delani and Robert Hansen, Rob and Sharon Jackson, Derek and Karol Jamison, Ken and Karen Johnston, Rick and Teri Katzer, Mary Koontz, George and Sandra Moore, Clark and Liz Mounsey, Sandra and Douglas Nalley, Barbara Nilson, Brennan OReilly, Mary Reeder, Nicole and George Wright, Phillip and Paula Yang, Apex Foundation, Enterprise Holdings Foundation and Jack Henry & Associates Inc.
Champions ($500 - $999):
Leslie Aungst, Shannon and Stuart Avery, Leah and Mike Battin, Geri and Jim Buchman, Dee Burris, Tom and Lori Carmondy, Willieann and Patrick Donahue, Ron and Lisa Elzig, Bo and Laura Ford, Robert and Patty Hogan, Todd and Erin Johnson, Debra Justice, Hyon and Charles Lee, Jim and Crystal Logan, Caren and John Maldon, Diane & Dennis Mitchell, Kevin and Debra Moore, Gregg Rule, Sara Spears, Liz and Jeff Swanson, Karen Williams, Home Street Bank, JK Group, Renton Community Foundation, SAP Software Solutions, United Way of King County.
Friends ($250 - $499):
Tiffany Ash,
Sebastian and Emily Atar, Melissa Fattore and Josh Bain, Karen Bainbridge, Amber and Torin Bainter, Beth Banks, Adrian and Tara Buchan, Cliff & Lisa Camp, Pat Stemen and Christine Cheach, Eric and Heidi Dobbs, Darcy Exley, Shari Fisher, Bob and Linda Foley, Jason Harper, Tom Brown and Heather Higgins, Steve Kaneko, Stephanie and Nathaniel Kenison, Kellie Langlois, Mike Leaird, Shawn Luvaas, Breanna Braun and James Lyndin, Heidi MacDonald, Al MacKenzie, Dawn Glinsmann and Scott Mathews, Robbee Minicola, Bill and Katie Morris, Leslie and Dana Neighbor, Becky Nickels, Aaron Shook and Amy Rathbone, Paula Reynolds, Ray and Judi Schafer, Kiko Shinoda, Kathy Silvernale, Chaz and Chris Spahn, Janice Tanner, My-Linh and Don Thai, Jeff and Nicole Wolford, Boeing Employee Credit Union, and Nordstrom Employee Charitable Match Program.
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2019 Board Members
- Caren Maldon - Chair
- Stuart Avery - Vice Chair
- Nicole Wright - Secretary
- OPEN - Treasurer
2019 Trustees
Shannon Avery (co-founder), Emily Albrecht**, Laura Cameron, Kim Cremers**, Delani Hansen, Teri Katzer, Priya Priyadarshini**, Chris Spahn (co-founder) and Desi Tucker.
**New trustee, welcome!
We are actively recruiting board members.
If you are interested in joining or learning more about
our Birthday Dreams board,
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Tax Information Update
Over the past year we have been sending receipts as donations are received. As such, we will not be mailing out year end summaries. If you
are missing a receipt please contact Becky:
Becky@BirthdayDreams.org
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Volunteer Orientations
Tuesday, January 15, 2019 6:00 PM
Saturday, January 19, 2019 11:00 AM
Tuesday, February 12, 2019 6:00 PM
Saturday, February 16, 2019 11:00 AM
Share your passion and talents.
Click here
for ways to get involved.
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Upcoming Committee Meetings
Thursday, January 17 at 6:30 PM —10th Birthday Committee Planning Meeting
Wednesday, January 30 at 6:30 PM— Development /Marketing Committee Meeting
All meetings are open to the public and held at: 1084 Kirkland Ave NE Renton, WA
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Harry Potter Cake
by Britt Oswald
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Mario Cupcakes
by Axis Peloquin
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Monster Cake
by Julie Funkhouser
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Use the Promo Code,
BDD2K2019
and 10% of the sales to
Foremost Printing
will be donated to
Birthday Dreams
.
When you have printing needs, call Foremost Printing at 206-501-5372.
Files or inquiries can be emailed to
ken@foremostprinting.com
Offer Expires 12/31/2019 (Offer good through 2019)
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Take a minute and share your story
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We have been voted a Top-Rated Non-Profit for 2018. Check out what people are saying about us.
We'd love to have you share your story with us. Give us a rating and let us know how we've impacted you.
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Birthday Dreams | P. 425-988-3954 | info@birthdaydreams.org | www.birthdaydreams.org
PO Box 2722 | Renton, WA 98056
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