The Birthday That Gives Back

We tend to do things big at Johnson Development (maybe you’ve noticed?), and perhaps our most enthusiastic “go big” team member is Tammy McCall, our award-winning Realtor Relations Extraordinaire.

And the thing that Tammy does biggest of all is her birthday. December is her birthday month (yes, that’s a thing) and her actual birthday is Dec. 14. And although the celebrations will be big in Tammy’s honor, this generous spirit is more interested in giving back rather than raking in a pile of gifts. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of “give back” gift ideas that you can source for all of your generous, birthday-loving friends.

Buy a Gift That Gives Back

Whether it be flowers, jewelry, glassware or other items, there is a wide assortment of wonderful gift items where part or all of the proceeds go to a particular charity. Oprah offers a wide-ranging list of give-back gifts that include everything from salami “bouquets” to Kendra Scott bracelets to sunglasses. For more ideas, check out these curated lists by Real Simple and Woman’s Day.

Turn Your Birthday Party Into A Fundraiser

Invite friends and family to a party that also doubles as a fundraiser. Charge a small admission, have a guessing game where people have to put $1 into the jar they think shows the right answer and have guests pay $1 to have their favorite song played. Planning a big party? See if a local restaurant might host it for you and give a percentage of money spent to the selected charity. You could also see if the charity might have freebies you can give to your guests as party favors.

Stage a Facebook Fundraiser

Facebook Fundraisers are an easy way to raise money for a cause. You can create a fundraiser for a specific non-profit or a personal fundraiser that supports a friend or business. Once created, the fundraiser is shared with friends who can easily click on the link to make a donation. Facebook covers all processing fees so that 100 percent of donations to a non-profit go to the organization. Learn more about Facebook Fundraisers here.

Volunteer Day with friends

Skip the birthday lunch with friends and instead head to the local food pantry, resale shop or other favorite charity that needs lots of hands to service their clients. You can still spend the afternoon catching up all while you’re stocking pantry shelves, sorting through donations, serving meals or whatever is being requested.

Birthday Food Drive

Ask birthday party revelers to bring a canned good (or five) to your birthday party to be donated to a local food pantry. This is an idea that could be used for both adult and child birthday parties.

For the Little Ones — Adopt a Soldier

Next birthday party for your art-loving little one, have everyone gather around the table to create cards, pictures and letters thanking deployed service members and veterans in a veterans home or veterans hospital for their service. View guidelines and see the mailing address on the America’s Adopt A Soldier website.