A birthday club for children who don't get parties [View all]

[Sherman A1]

Just thought some good news was in order.....

ROCKFORD, Ill. • Vicki Benson was shocked when she learned some children in Rockford have no birthday parties.
They have no cake, no cards, no gift, not even an acknowledgement that they're a year older.
To Benson, who grew up with a mom who made birthdays a daylong celebration, that situation had to be fixed. She had an idea — a birthday club for underprivileged kids — named after her mother, Rosemary Musick.
The plans for Rosie's Birthday Club grew in Benson's mind until one day three years ago, when a friend had heard enough. Barb Verni-Lau reached into her pocketbook, pulled out $25 and said, "Here. We're going to the Northwest Community Center and we're going to do it."
That was the first party thrown by Rosie's Birthday Club under the sponsorship of Benson and a group of volunteers. The monthly events are for kids at Northwest Community Center, Carlson and Second Congregational Boys and Girls clubs, Rock House Kids and Shelter Care Ministries. Last month, the club reached a milestone by celebrating birthday number 1,000.
Each month, a Rosie's Club volunteer shows up and gathers the kids who have birthdays that month. They decorate birthday hats and get ready for another Rosie's emissary who shows up with a big cake. Of course, there are presents, too, a gift for each child purchased from wish lists compiled by the children.

Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/state-and-regional/illlinois/a-birthday-club-for-children-who-don-t-get-parties/article_11ed7b80-4111-5e3d-be0b-82837aada951.html#ixzz20iVrOYAi