At eight years old, Natalie realized there was a much better way to celebrate her birthday than opening presents. For five years, Natalie dedicated her birthdays to Easter Seals by hosting a “Family Fun 4 Easter Seals” fundraiser in her hometown of Hanover. In total, her parties raised over $37,000!
Natalie has Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), which means her muscles get progressively weaker. She relies on a power wheelchair for mobility and needs help with daily living tasks. She has been supported by Easter Seals Ontario and loves attending our fully accessible summer camps.
“To me, Easter Seals means freedom. Especially at camp, it’s the most freedom I’ve ever had,”
says Natalie.
It was a no-brainer for Natalie to forgo presents in support of the organization that has done so much for her. “I was happy to see people’s money going somewhere better than to a bunch of stuff I didn’t need,” says Natalie.
Natalie isn’t the only child who has helped Easter Seals through her birthday parties. Many families are deciding to make charitable donations a focus of their celebrations in order to make a difference for someone else who needs assistance.
If you want to help other children like Natalie attend camp this summer or receive funding for mobility equipment by holding a birthday fundraiser, contact Ana Da Costa at adacosta@easterseals.org or call 1-800-668-6252 ex. 337.
ECHOage Partnership
Easter Seals Ontario has partnered with ECHOage, an online birthday party service that is both charity driven and eco-friendly. The website allows children who are hosting a birthday party to support a charity at the same time.
How does it work?
By going online, children can create their birthday invitations, their birthday list and choose a charity they want to support. There are many charities partnered with ECHOage that kids can choose from. When guests receive their invitations, they can view what the host would like for their birthday and what charity the host has chosen to support. Guests can then decide if they would like to donate money to the charity instead of buying a gift. Half of the money that is donated will go towards the charity, while the rest will be given to the host’s parents to purchase the gifts.
Go to echoage.com to see how it works!