Grandmother Hosts Birthday Parties For Special Needs Kids Who Don't Get Invites— 'We Celebrate Everybody's Birthday'
She shows the importance of putting kindness into action.
RDNE Stock Project / Pexels Birthday parties are milestone events in a child’s life, yet sometimes, the occasion being marked is one of feeling excluded, when kids decline to show up to a party when invited, leaving the birthday kid with extremely hurt feelings.
But one woman in Michigan goes out of her way to make birthdays something to celebrate, for all people, after being inspired by her grandson.
One grandmother hosts birthday parties for ‘unique’ kids who don’t get invites to other parties.
As UpNorthLive reported, Ronie Williams is the grandma to Jacob, a young boy on the autism spectrum. Through her grandson, Williams understands the experience of not being invited to a birthday party, or not having kids who were invited to a party show up, all because you’re different from other kids.
Williams stated, "Special needs or unique kids do not get kids to come to their parties, or they don't get invited to parties," specifying that she calls them 'unique' "because I don't like the name 'special needs,' because I think they're unique."
Photo: WPBN/WGTU
In witnessing her grandson’s heartache over birthday party invites going unfulfilled, Williams decided to take action and spread kindness in her neighborhood in Grand Traverse County, Michigan.
Williams’ birthday tradition started two years ago when she organized a unique party for anyone unique who wanted to be included. That first party included 25 kids. Since then, the numbers have grown to double that amount.
The thoughtful and empathic grandma organized a big community birthday party, ‘to celebrate everybody’s birthday.’
This year’s celebration was held at a public park, and kids with all levels of uniqueness were encouraged to come. Williams noted that there's no age limit; if a unique adult wants to be included in the festivities, they're more than welcome to join.
The third annual unique party theme was Spiderman. Williams provided cupcakes and a sense of welcoming her community. At the party, kids made use of the playground and splash pad, doing what all kids love to do — play with their friends.
"We decided to get together and throw big parties, and celebrate everybody's birthday, not just Jacob's but everybody's birthday," Williams said.
She continues to organize the party, year after year, to bring joy to her grandson and to other kids like him. It clearly provides kids with a high point in their year. Williams referred to one young girl who was nonverbal at last year's party; at the party the following year, her mother noted that she didn't stop talking about the celebration.
Photo: WPBN/WGTU
With her big birthday bash, Williams recognizes the importance of being inclusive to all kids. As she explained during an interview, “We get so much goodness out of it. It makes us feel good. It makes the parents feel good.”
The idea of a community birthday party is a simple and actionable way to let kids know they matter, even when society might tell them otherwise.
All too often, we hear stories of kids spending their birthday parties alone, because none of the guests bothered to follow through on showing up. If memories are made by showing up, Williams has certainly shown up, not just for her grandson, but for all kids deserving of love, care and most of all, joy.
Alexandra Blogier is a writer on YourTango's news and entertainment team. She covers community news, pop culture analysis and all things to do with the entertainment industry.